TODD, AMANDA J. Ph.D. Spiritual Landscapes in the 21st Century ...

TODD, AMANDA J. Ph.D. Spiritual Landscapes in the 21st Century: The Geography of Power

Mountains and Healing Waters of the Southern Appalachian Region. (2010)

Directed By Dr. Susan Walcott. 192 pp.

This research focuses on the non-secular uses and perceptions of selected topographically

prominent natural landscape features in the Southern Appalachian Region. The research assesses

if people continue to use natural landscapes for non-secular activities in the 21st century and also

explores place perception. Cultural groups throughout the world consider particular mountains

and water features as sacred or culturally meaningful, as evidenced in creation myths, folklore,

and/or use as ceremonial grounds. Mountains are often associated as powerful spots providing

inspiration; water features are often known for their healing abilities. This research compiles local

folklore and historical documents about uses of five different landscape features within the

region. These sites are assessed if they can be classified as spiritual landscapes based upon non-

secular use, experiences, and perceptions of people at the sites today. This research aims to better

understand the idea of a spiritual landscape which is defined by the experiences of the numinous,

cosmic, and aesthetic dimensions. This knowledge also helps in furthering the study of

topophilia. Multiple sources and methods were used in this research, and included archival

research, in-depth unstructured interviews of knowledgeable experts and structured

questionnaires of visitors to the target locations, as well as observation of and participation in

non-secular events at each site. Today individuals and groups choose to use these locations for

non-secular activities such as weddings, memorial services, private meditation areas, and spiritual

group events which is researched for understanding the cosmic dimension of a spiritual

landscape. Many people visit these sites for personal experiences they have had or hope to have

while there and thus perceive these sites as somehow special and/or different from places in their

everyday lives.

SPIRITUAL LANDSCAPES IN THE 21ST

CENTURY: THE GEOGRAPHY OF

POWER MOUNTAINS AND HEALING WATERS OF THE

SOUTHERN APPALACHIAN REGION.

by

Amanda J. Todd

A Dissertation Submitted to

the Faculty of The Graduate School at

The University of North Carolina at Greensboro

in Partial Fulfillment

of the Requirements for the Degree

Doctor of Philosophy

Greensboro

2010

Approved by

________________________________

Committee Chair

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To those that love the Appalachian Mountains.

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APPROVAL PAGE

This dissertation has been approved by the following committee of the Faculty of

The Graduate School at The University of North Carolina at Greensboro.

Committee Chair:

Committee Members:

Date of Acceptance by Committee

Date of Final Oral Examination

iv

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

I would first like to thank my parents David and Brenda and my brother Matthew for

their support over the past few years and in encouraging me throughout my life. I must thank my

parents as well for their financial support over the years while in school and in collecting my data.

I would also like to thank a special group of friends in Greensboro who spiritually encouraged me

to pursue my dreams and interest over the past four years as I was growing in so many new ways.

Thanks to Dale and Jeanne Stacy, Vikki Melvin, Lynn Hawks, and many others who were part of

my growth while in Greensboro and helping me to clarify why and what I was doing and their

spiritual insights. I must thank Dr. Susan Walcott for her support and believing in my research

topic from the beginning and helping me through the process of learning a different style of

geographic thought. Thanks to my committee members Dr. Michael Lewis, Dr. Corey Johnson

and Dr. Gregory Grieve for giving me great advice and additional insights on this topic and their

interest in my research. Also I would like to acknowledge the Geography Department for their

support of my research ideas even though it was outside of their normal departments activities. I

would like to thank fellow graduate students Carly Hertz and Bill Tyminski for listening to my

ideas and their encouragement in the process. I must also thank the many people along the way

that I interviewed and talked with at the parks for their insight and willingness to share their

personal experiences with a stranger. A big thanks also goes to the geography faculty as well at

Appalachian State University. I received my master’s degree as a physical geographer interested

in fluvial processes from the department eight years ago and have always felt supported by the

department. Upon moving back to the mountains to teach at ASU, I found much inspiration

between the Appalachian Mountains I love and the amazing support of the faculty here to finish

writing the dissertation with ease and confidence. Thanks to all the wonderful souls I met over

the years who encouraged me to pursue and to finish this part on my life’s journey.

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PREFACE

I pursued this topic for both academic and personal reasons. Firstly for my love and

respect of the Appalachian Mountains and secondly because of my spiritual interest in nature and

what people are doing today in the world to honor places. I am especially interested in this topic

after hearing a Peruvian Elder say at Mount Mitchell that the Appalachian Mountains were crying

out for ceremonies and ways to honor the land. I hope that this research sparks others in the

future to pursue different avenues of geographic thought and research as well as encourages

people to celebrate the mountains through ceremonies as well as through personal journeys with

the help of nature.

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Table of Contents

Page

LIST OF TABLES ....................................................................................................................... viii

LIST OF FIGURES ........................................................................................................................ ix

CHAPTER

I. INTRODUCTION ...................................................................................................... 1

1.1 Statement of the Problem .......................................................................... 1

1.2 Terminology ............................................................................................. 4

1.3 Study Area: Spiritual Landscapes ............................................................ 6

1.4 Research Questions .................................................................................. 8

1.5 Objectives and Methodology ................................................................... 9

II. REVIEW OF THE LITERATURE .......................................................................... 11

2.1 Geography of Religion and Spirituality .................................................. 11

2.2 The Human-Environment Relationship and Religion

in Geography ........................................................................................ 12

2.3 New Geographies of Religion in the 21st Century .................................. 16

2.4 Defining and Understanding Sacred Places ........................................... 18

Power Mountains ...................................................................... 26

Healing Waters ......................................................................... 29

2.5 Spirituality, Spiritual Experiences, and Spiritual Landscapes ............... 31

Numinous ................................................................................... 34

Cosmic ...................................................................................... 35

Aesthetic .................................................................................... 40

2.6 Perceptions of Landscapes ..................................................................... 41

2.7 Wilderness Areas in America as Spiritual Landscapes ........................... 43

2.8 Transcendentalism and Views on Nature in America ............................. 44

2.9 The Importance of Scale in Spiritual Landscapes ................................... 45

2.10 The Importance of Studying a Mountain Region ................................... 46

III. STUDY AREA ......................................................................................................... 48

3.1 Defining Appalachia and the Southern Appalachian Region ................. 48

3.2 The Geography of the Southern Appalachian Region ............................ 52

Physical Geography .................................................................. 53

Cultural Geography .................................................................. 57

3.3 Southern Appalachian Region Study Sites ............................................ 63

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IV. METHODS ............................................................................................................... 66

4.1 Overview ................................................................................................. 66

4.2 Textual Analysis ..................................................................................... 68

4.3 Expert Interviews .................................................................................... 69

4.4 Questionnaire for Tourists ...................................................................... 72

4.5 Observation and Participation ................................................................. 73

V. SPIRITUAL LANDSCAPES IN THE SOUTHERN

APPALACHIAN REGION .................................................................................... 77

5.1 Research Sites in the Region .................................................................. 77

Mountain Features ..................................................................... 78

Water Features ......................................................................... 110

5.2 Sacred Place verses Spiritual Landscape results ................................... 150

5.3 Spiritual Landscapes of the Southern Appalachian Region .................. 156

VI. DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS .................................................................. 158

6.1 Spiritual Landscapes in the Region ..................................................... 158

6.2 Research Questions, Conclusions, and Discussions ............................. 161

6.3 Future Research Questions and Considerations .................................... 170

REFERENCES ............................................................................................................................ 174

APPENDIX A: EXPERT INTERVIEW SAMPLE QUESTIONS .............................................. 186

APPENDIX B: VISITOR QUESTIONNAIRE ........................................................................... 189

APPENDIX C: PERSONAL COMMUNICATIONS ................................................................. 191

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LIST OF TABLES

Page

Table 1. Summary of Sites, Methodology, Dates, and Events ....................................................... 71

Table 2. Percentages of Yes Responses to Spiritual Dimension Questions for

Grandfather Mountain .................................................................................................... 89


Mount Mitchell ............................................................................................................ 103


Amicalola Falls ............................................................................................................ 115


Blue Hole Spring ......................................................................................................... 131


Cumberland Falls ......................................................................................................... 142

Table 7. Summary of all Sites Percentages of Yes Responses to Questions ............................... 150

Table 8. Summary of Myths at Each Study Site and Percentage of Responses

for designating the landscape as sacred ...................................................................... 154

Table 9. Comparison of known types of non-secular activities including

Rituals/Ceremonies for each site and percentages of yes responses

from visitors to cosmic dimension ............................................................................. 155

Table 10. Summary of Physical Landscape Features.................................................................. 166

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LIST OF FIGURES

Page

Figure 1. Fords 1962-Southern Appalachian Region “Heartland of Appalachia”. .............. 7

Figure 2. Appalachian Mountain Region ................................................................................. 50

Figure 3. Physiographic Provinces and Valley’s of the Appalachian Region 2009 ........... 55

Figure 4. Study Sites with County Locations in the Southern Appalachian Region .......... 65

Figure 5. Southern Appalachian Region Study Sites, nearby cities, and interstates. ......... 79

Figure 6. One view of the Grandfathers’ profile .................................................................... 80

Figure 7. Rocky Outcroppings along Grandfather Mountain. ............................................... 81

Figure 8. Mount Mitchell Highest peak east of the Mississippi River. ................................ 97

Figure 9. Mount Mitchell forest ................................................................................................ 97

Figure 10. View from Mount Mitchell observation deck of forest and surrounding

mountains ................................................................................................................. 98

Figure 11. Photograph taken in 1894 from the top of Mount Mitchell ............................. 101

Figure 12. Despacho. ................................................................................................................ 107

Figure 13. Amicalola Falls ...................................................................................................... 111

Figure 14. View from top of the waterfall looking out towards Dahlonega Uplands. ..... 113

Figure 15. View from top of the waterfall, surrounding mountain vistas .......................116

Figure 16. View of Waterfall from below standing on bridge .......................................118

Figure 17. Visitors viewing the waterfall............................................................................... 119

Figure 18. Memorial at Amicalola Falls .............................................................................. 121

Figure 19. Pool downstream of bridge at start of waterfall ................................................ 123

Figure 20. Pennies and other coins in the pool at top of waterfall .................................... 123

Figure 21. Blue Hole Spring/Council Spring photograph taken from bridge. .................. 129

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LIST OF FIGURES

Page

Figure 22. Cumberland Falls view from downstream ........................................................ 137

Figure 23. Rainbow taken at 10:13 AM ................................................................................ 141

Figure 24. Rainbow taken by author at 10:11 AM July 8th

, 2009....................................... 144

Figure 25. Moonbow photograph at 12:42 AM. ................................................................... 146

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CHAPTER I

INTRODUCTION

1.1 Statement of the Problem

This research explores place perceptions and non-secular uses of major highland

and water landscapes throughout the Southern Appalachian Region. Previous research in

this field has been limited partially due to the resistance in geography to studies about

religion, and to some degree the manner in which such topics could be studied and

researched.

Extensive research on sacred places exists for Europe, Asia, and the American

Southwest (Parks 1994; McPherson 1995; Ivakhiv 1997; Blake 2001; Gray 2008).

Martin Gray traveled extensively over several decades visiting, photographing, and

studying sacred sites and compiled a book of his travels documenting the places of man-

made and natural religious importance around the world however, with little in the

American Southeast. Chris Parks wrote one of the few books about geography and

religion and discuses sacred places of the world and the relationship between geography

and religion through sacred places worshiped as well as pilgrimages. Parks also focused

more on other places in the world and not the American Southeast. McPherson and

Blake both researched the sacred mountains in the American Southwest of the Dine’.

They related the sacred mountains to the orientation and “home area” of the Dine’ and

the cosmos, as well as noting the importance of sacred mountains for medicinal purposes.

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Ivakhiv conducted his dissertation research on Sedona, Arizona, and Glastonbury,

England, and has continued to write and study focusing on those two sacred landscapes.

Very limited literature is available on sacred places in the American Southeast.

Many gaps remain concerning place perception of certain landscapes that may be

considered sacred or culturally significant to different people in the Southeast and on a

smaller scale in the Appalachian Mountains. There have been few studies around the

world, which examined the non-secular uses associated with spiritual and/or religious

activities at various natural landscapes. Pilot Mountain in North Carolina is included on

lists with Mt. Shasta in northern California and Mt. Fuji in Japan as well-known sacred

mountains and New Age pilgrim sites (Guiley 1995; Olson 2003). However, little else

has been written on the landscapes of the American South or the Appalachian region

regarding spiritual connections to the land and human experiences with these landscapes

more broadly. Information about sacred places and how landscapes are used religiously

or spiritually in the Southern Appalachian Region is important for preservation of cultural

beliefs and popular public landscapes, and to understand the meaning of landscapes

related to spirituality.

Numerous cultures throughout the world consider particular landscapes as sacred

or culturally meaningful (Evola 1998; Lane 1998; Ball 2000; Blake 2001). Many

indigenous groups revere mountains with monolithic structures through creation myths or

stories of gods inhabiting them (Eliade 1959; Tuan 1974; Pennick 1996; Ball 2000).

Numerous monolithic sites emanate from the landscape within the Southern Appalachian

Region. Creation myths and stories revere mountaintops as powerful ceremonial

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grounds. The Dine (Navajo) and the Mescalero Apache, both Athabascan groups, have

four sacred mountains linked to the four directions within their homeland’s landscape.

Each mountain is associated with stories, colors, directions, crystals, and plant medicines

(Ball 2000).

Indigenous groups, as well as Christians and Catholics, have stories associated

with water features, such as springs and rivers as healing centers and waterfalls as

ceremonial sites. Water features such as springs are often known in folklore as healing

centers, and rivers are often used for special ceremonies. Examples of this include

“cross-overs” for the Cherokee or baptisms for Christians (Choudbury 1994; Garrett and

Garrett 1996; Pennick 1996; Narayan 2004). Cross-overs are based on the idea that as

one crosses over a body of water, such as a creek or river, his/her perceptions change in

order to help bring the person into balance and harmony with themselves and their

surrounding environment (Garrett and Garrett 1996).

In his dissertation, Mills (1992: 218) raises the question “Do We, Can We, or

Should We Have Spiritual Landscapes in Contemporary North America?” This study

picks up where Mills left off in hoping to answer this question in particular as it applies

to the Southern Appalachian Region. This research is not interested in only the place as

being sacred but the human experiences that occur at the place in question. Mills named

three qualities for what he termed a “spiritual landscape”: a site with numinous, cosmic,

and aesthetic qualities. These qualities create experiences for people at places as defined

in more detail in Chapter II.

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This study also expands upon Tuan’s (1974) ideas of topophilia which involves

the bonds between people and place. The concern of this study is in the present,

examining how we as a society use and view landscapes for non-secular purposes in the

twenty first century. Few studies have researched the interaction between the land and

the ways in which people use areas outside of traditional outdoor recreation activities and

their spiritual experiences and perceptions of the place. What can be demonstrated, and

is the main question for this research, is if people have spiritual experiences with their

natural surroundings. In another example, natural landscapes that are respected and

venerated, where non-secular activities take place, often produce feelings, attitudes, and a

certain spiritual frame of mind. This research seeks to bring a greater understanding and

awareness of natural landscapes that evoke spiritual experiences and non-secular

activities by looking at the interactions people have at various natural landscapes in the

Southern Appalachian Region.

1.2 Terminology

A few key words for this study are defined in the beginning of this work in order

to simplify and clarify the research questions proposed later. Because this research deals

with sacred and spiritual landscapes and spiritual experiences, the difference between the

two terms sacred and spiritual needs to be discussed and defined for the purposes of this

research.

What is sacred, and how the term is defined for this research, begins with

understanding the difference between sacred and profane as well as secular and non-

secular. Sacred and profane are opposite by definition. According to The American

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Heritage Dictionary (AHD) sacred may relate to an aspect of religion as something holy,

or worthy of veneration and entitled to reverence and respect, while profane refers to

“nonreligious in subject matter” (AHD 2006: 1400). Sacred may also be referred to as

non-secular. Secular refers to “worldly rather than spiritual or not relating to religion or

to a religious body (AHD 2006: 1574) whereas the term non-secular is popularly used to

describe activities and events that are more spiritual in nature (Eliade 1959). Profane and

secular both imply that that they are not concerned with religion or religious purposes

and not regarded as holy. This research focuses on the use of the terms sacred and non-

secular in order to identify and discuss spiritual landscapes. Throughout this work,

sacred landscapes imply landscapes that are set apart as something holy or respected by

an individual or by a group. Non-secular uses, referring to activities associated with

religious purposes, will be of great interest for identifying spiritual landscapes and

understanding people’s spiritual experiences and motivations for visiting these sites.

In addition to understanding the terms sacred and non-secular for purposes of

identifying spiritual landscapes, spirituality and spiritual experiences are defined here to

help clarify the research topic. One definition of spirituality is “of, relating to, consisting

of, or having the nature of spirit; not tangible or material” also referring to “relating,

consisting of, or affecting the spirit” (AHD 2006: 1676). Another definition of

spirituality in the Encyclopedia of Religion in the South (ERS) is that it is the

“experiential, emotional, psychological side of religion, in contrast to the organized,

institutionalized aspect…spirituality is an individualized and internal sense of the Divine

or Transcendent” (Hardesty 2005). Spirit can imply ghostly apparitions but for this

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research spirit refers to the “the vital principle or animating force within living

beings…the soul….the part of the human associated with the mind, will, and feelings”

(ERS 2005: 1676).

J.E. Mills (1992) further elaborated on spiritual experiences to include numinous,

cosmic, and aesthetic qualities. When these experiences occur within nature, at a

particular place, a spiritual landscape can be identified. Feelings and beliefs that

influence a person’s attitude and psyche may vary from one individual to another; at

other times and places peoples’ experiences may be the same. Geographer Yi-Fu Tuan

coined the term topophilia which will be used extensively in this research. Topophlia

includes the study of personal experiences, emotions, and sentiment one has with a place

(Tuan 1974). This research ties into topophila in looking at the bond between people and

place in regards to spiritual experiences people have at specific natural locations. This

research will be looking at the bond between people and place in regards to

religion/spiritual experiences and identifying spiritual landscapes in the Southern

Appalachian Region.

1.3 Study Area: Spiritual Landscapes

The geographic region for this work is the Southern Appalachian Region within

the states of Alabama, Georgia, Kentucky, North Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia, and

West Virginia. This research focuses only on the Southern Appalachian Region,

therefore, Ford’s 1962 delineation is used as shown in Figure 1. Many researchers view

Ford’s delineation as the “heartland of Appalachia” (Raitz and Ulack 1984). In order to

provide focus for this research, this smaller concentrated geographic area of the

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Appalachian region is useful. The sites in this research within this region are chosen

because of their known utilization for non-secular purposes historically and/or at present

and the physical features within the landscape.

Figure 1: Fords 1962-Southern Appalachian Region “Heartland of Appalachia”.

Source: Ford 1962; The Center for Teaching and Learning at Chapel Hill 1997 accessed

2009. http://www.unc.edu/~whisnant/appal/maps/Ford-1962.gif

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The Southern Appalachian Region was selected as the study site for two main

reasons. First, there is a lack of published material regarding natural landscapes and

cultural belief systems, especially pertaining to mountain environments such as the

Appalachian Region. Second, the human-environment connections, and the ties between

the physical landscape and spirituality, have not been the focus of geographical studies in

this region. However, it is an important topic that could bring new insights into the

tourism industry through preservations efforts in the region and also into the geography

of religion and belief systems in understanding another facet of the human-environment

relationship especially in a mountain environment and culture.

1.4 Research Questions

The major proposed questions in this research are:

1. What types of spiritual experiences are associated with different natural sites?

2. What types of non-secular activities are associated with different natural sites?

3. At the selected five study sites, what types of features within the landscape are

people having spiritual experiences at within the Southern Appalachian Region?

4. Is Mills’ definition of a spiritual landscape appropriate and useful in helping to

identify if we can and if we do have spiritual landscapes in America; in particular

in the Southern Appalachian Region.

5. Does the study of spiritual landscapes further Tuan’s ideas of topophilia as it

incorporates the spiritual bond and connections with people and place?

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This research does not question the reality or authenticity of spiritual experiences.

The overall objective is to understand the relationships between place and spirituality

through peoples’ words about their experiences at places. In another example, natural

landscapes that are respected and venerated where non-secular activities occur often

produce feelings, attitudes, and a certain frame of mind, thus the bond of people to place

is affected such as is with studying topophilia. This research seeks to bring a greater

understanding and awareness of natural landscapes that evoke spiritual experiences in the

Southern Appalachian region (SAR), identify where they are, the features involved, why

some places are respected more than others, the types of experiences that people report

having there and the non-secular activities that occur at the sites.

1.5 Objectives and Methodology

This research aims to better understand spiritual landscapes which are defined by

the dimensions of the numinous, cosmic, and aesthetic experiences people have at a

place. The numinous and aesthetic dimensions of a spiritual landscape can be understood

through people’s experiences, emotions, and perceptions. Knowledge of non-secular

activities that occurred helped to defend the cosmic dimension defining a spiritual

landscape. Multiple sources and methods are used in this research, including archival

research, in-depth unstructured interviews of knowledgeable experts and structured

questionnaires of visitors to the target locations, as well as observation of and

participation in non-secular events at each site. Today individuals and groups choose to

use these locations for non-secular activities such as weddings, memorial services,

private meditation areas, and spiritual group events.

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Information about non-secular use, experiences, and perceptions of landscapes is

important for cultural preservation of myths and folklore attached to particular physical

settings. This information is also useful in understanding people’s perceptions of

landscapes today. It is also important for promoting the continued preservation of such

landscapes which are currently under threat in several areas of the United States due to

resource extraction and/or limited access and use by those who regard the area as sacred.

The following research sheds light on the natural places that people identify as

being associated with spiritual experiences in the target region today. Historical uses of

natural landscapes for religious or spiritual purposes, as well as perceptions and non-

secular uses of these places within the contemporary Southern Appalachian Region

deserve attention from academics as well as the popular media.

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CHAPTER II

REVIEW OF THE LITERATURE

2.1 Geography of Religion and Spirituality

Since ancient Greek times, geographers have been interested in studying and

teaching about religion as part of cultural studies (Kong 1990). In many ways, religion is

also important for understanding the human-environment relationship. The shrine built

for the Oracle of Delphi to honor the earth Goddess Gaia was selected because of the

spirit of the place or genus loci. The spirit of the place was believed to provide the

Oracle with a powerful mysterious connection to the spirit world and to issue prophesies.

Tourists flock today in shear fascination of the historical events while spiritual pilgrims

go there to feel the spirit and power of the place (Swan 1991). In his keynote address to

the First World Congress on Cultural Parks in 1984, Lester Borley (Director of the

National Trust of Scotland and an authority on tourism) stated, “perhaps the most

powerful of all world tourism motives is the desire to visit special places with a spiritual

quality” (Swan 1991: 4).

Today there is a renewed interest in this relationship within popular media as well

as among planners and politicians dealing with the interface between humans and the

environment and the religious characteristics of people and places. The human-

environment dimension of geography is one of the classic “Five Themes of Geography”

(Natoli 1994). The five themes that were introduced for Geographic Education by the

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Association of American Geographers include: location, place, relationships within

places (human-land/environment), relationships between places (movement), and regions.

This research will look at the human-environment relationships of places from a religious

perspective which is an important topic in the twenty-first century and a topic within the

academic field of geography that should be explored.

This research topic is diverse, covering both cultural and physical geography. By

looking at how the spiritual element manifests itself to people in the physical world at

particular landscapes, this research will show if people have spiritual experiences in

nature and how spiritual landscapes can be identified and understood through topophilia

and non-secular uses as defined in Chapter I. Although research on how religion and

spirituality link humans and nature has been rare within geography in the last few

decades, this topic could provide much insight and another avenue for understanding the

human-environment relationship that is an important topic in the twenty-first century.

2.2 The Human-Environment Relationship and Religion in Geography

Carl Sauer was one of the first geographers in the United States to analyze

landscapes and cultural perceptions (Sauer 1963). Other geographers since Sauer have

gone in different directions, from looking at landscapes from a purely physical position to

looking at how landscapes impact cultures through settlement patterns and migrations. In

the 1970‟s, Yi-Fu Tuan (1974), a former PhD student of Sauer‟s, started researching

people‟s feelings including the bond between people and place through their love of the

land, perceptions, and attachments to landscapes known as topophilia.

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Within geography, there has been a fragmented body of scholarly work devoted to

religion and spirituality (Sopher 1981). Studies within geography about religion can

primarily be included in one of the following areas according to Stump (1986: 2) and

Raivo (1997: 27): “denominational geography, study of pilgrimages, study of religion

and nature, or the study of the spatial use of areas and landscapes by different religious

groups”. Religions were historically mapped to indicate boundaries and spatial diffusion,

such as in Africa with the Islamic Front/African Transition Zone (De Blij 2009).

According to Tuan (1976), in the 1970‟s the Geography of Religion and Belief

Systems specialty group of the Association of American Geographers was in disarray

primarily because geographers did not know how to define the Geography of Religion or

Religious Geography. Geographers now differentiate the two by considering that the

geography of religion is less concerned with religion and more concerned with the effects

of religions on cultural and place. Geography of Religion research studies global patterns,

spatial diffusion, and boundaries (Raivo 1997; Buttimer 2006). Religious Geography is

interested in how religion affects people‟s perceptions and place within humanity (Raivo

1997). The sub-discipline of the Geography of Religion and Belief Systems according to

Raivo (1997) also has problems with fitting into the general area of human geography.

This groups problem with fitting into human geography may be due to the groups lack of

coherence according to Sopher (1981: 510) or as according to Tuan it is a field of

disarray (1976). Geographers within the specialty group thirty years later still question

what research is being conducted and what research is being ignored. More research

related to religion still remains to be conducted within the discipline of geography, which

14

could shed light and help our society understand current issues and concerns of the

twenty-first century.

Adrian Ivankiv (2006), although not a geographer, researched pilgrim sites

(Sedona, Arizona and Glastonbury, England) and has written several articles on religion

and geographical studies. Ivankiv believes that there is much to be learned from the

modern era, tying geography with religion. Ivankiv (2006) uses Jonathon Z. Smith‟s

definition of religion as “a second order classification system used to define a discipline”

(Smith 1998: 282). He discusses the confusion of the discipline‟s use of the terms

religion and sacred as did Tuan in 1976. Many researchers are hesitant to use these

terms since the meanings are not clearly defined and based more on individual research

interest.

Often geographers discuss the role religion played on the cultural landscapes of

regions. Richard Jackson and Roger Henrie‟s research in the early 1980‟s focused on the

Mormon culture in relation to perceptions of natural landscapes and man-made structures

(1983). Only a few contemporary geographers such as Yi-Fu Tuan, James Mills, and

Richard Francaviglia have been concerned with understanding spirituality and its

relationship to place. These geographers have coined certain phrases that are relevant to

this study. Yi-Fu Tuan (1974) focuses on topophilia, Mills (1992) focuses on spiritual

landscapes, and Richard Francaviglia (2003) focuses on spiritual geography.

Space is another area of interest for geographers, especially how it is used for

various rituals, buildings (i.e., temples, mosques, churches, and cemeteries), and as well

as space occupied within a town. Kong (1992 and 1993) and Singh (1994) research

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focuses in India on the orientation of Hindu temples representing the cosmos on a small

scale. Kong (1992) also did research on personal and familial ties to churches and Hindu

temples, looking into personal attachments and senses of place in India. Similar beliefs

hold true for Fengshui practitioners in Asia where houses and cemeteries are built in

certain orientations to the landscape and either on or not near certain physical landscape

features (Teather and Chow 2000). The follower of fengshui finds numerous symbolic

meanings within landscape features.

Many indigenous groups around the world may not want their sacred spaces

known by their exact coordinates, and it is often hard within their own culture to identify

an exact spot. In some groups one person may know the location, while another person

knows the purpose and use of the location, and another one knows what ceremonies to do

there or the myths associated with it. There are several limitations to geographical studies

about religion, including the lack of a cohesive understanding within the discipline on

what should or needs to be studies, what information is obtainable from various groups,

and what research can be done without feeling rejected by the discipline for researching

superstitions and magico-religious practices (Buttimer 2006).

Geographers tend to emphasize the secular, often ignoring the role of spiritual

perceptions in shaping attitudes towards particular places. People‟s relationship with

religion through secularization of everyday life and religious fundamentalism in the

twenty first century, is a direct result and mirror of the dualities seen within religion

today throughout the world. Kong (1990) and others argue that religion is mentioned

16

within courses on cultural geography, but little research has been done. Anne Buttimer in

her Afterword: Reflections on Geography, Religion, and Belief Systems, explains:

Geographers today might well reflect more carefully on global evidence of ways

in which religion is today influencing the merging patterns of human behavior on

the surface of the earth. To seek better understanding of indigenous modes of

understanding nature…does not in any way imply a celebration of pseudoscience

of superstition. On the contrary, it amounts to admitting that contemporary

humanity needs to remember more harmonious ways of dwelling on Planet Earth

(2006: 201).

Kong (2001) also feels that religion has been forgotten and needs to be included in

geographical analysis along with race, class, and gender. In her article Mapping ‘new’

geographies of religion: politics and poetics in modernity, Kong researched articles

within geography on religion in the 1990‟s. According to Kong‟s findings in 2001, Chris

Park (1994) is the only one during this time that researched religion. Kong also feels that

no “new directions” were taken within the sub-discipline during the 1990‟s (2001: 212).

Kong (2001: 212) refers to these „new‟ directions that could be good research topics

within geography as looking into “spirituality, cultural politics, personal experience, and

symbolism”.

2.3 New Geographies of Religion in the 21st Century

Studying and researching new directions within the sub-discipline of geography

associated with spirituality and religion is an area that geographers could significantly

influence. By the discipline‟s natural approach of having a holistic understanding of both

physical and human geographic factors and employing mixed techniques to answer tough

humanistic questions, geographers could greatly contribute knowledge to help with

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current issues and trends dealing with spirituality in western society. Human

geographers studying spirituality might be able to give insights into current perceptions

and beliefs in the twenty-first century, as well as trends and patterns that are emerging in

religion and with spiritual growth.

As globalization spreads religious beliefs and people migrate to new areas, taking

their current religious beliefs with them, the dynamics of the religious character of places

changes around the world. In a 1998 Gallup poll, James Redfield (2000: 78-79) wrote

that “82% of those surveyed reported that spiritual growth was a very important part of

their lives.”

The interest in spirituality has become increasingly apparent in America with the

growing number of TV shows, talk radio shows, spiritual books, and movies dealing with

aspects of spirituality. Since TV shows such as Touched by an Angel first aired in 1994,

and movies such as The Celestine Prophecy (2006) and The DaVinci Code (2006)

became hits, more and more media outlets feature a spiritual dimension. Even media-star

Oprah Winfrey added a spiritual dimension to her talk show, magazine, and website to

promote spiritual conversations, books, courses, and workshops. Recently, there has also

been the islamophobic reaction to the New York City proposed mosque location where

the twin towers fell September 11, 2001. Geographer, Francaviglia (2003) predicts that

spirituality will be among the most significant trends in human behavior in the 21st

century. Geographers should be aware of this subject, especially as it relates to other

growing trends in historic preservation and environmental protection, which both may be

18

influenced by a spiritual interest in the human-environment relationship (Francaviglia

2003).

2.4 Defining and Understanding Sacred Places

Scholars from various academic disciplines have attempted to define the phrase

“sacred place” (Tuan 1974; Mills 1992; Pennick 1996; Lane 2002). The definition often

depends upon the researcher‟s background and interest or the purpose of the research and

study (i.e., religious, cultural, and/or political, such as legal issues over American Indian

sites, and economical such as for tourism, or historical interest). Sacred places involve

cultural perception revealed through myths and religious history applied to the physical

setting (Eliade 1959). To fully appreciate and understand a sacred place, the documented

approach should include both more quantitative scientific and qualitative humanistic

methods (Lane 2002). Herein lies the problem. It is much easier to explain a sacred place

from a humanistic interpretation; however, it is much more difficult to scientifically

explain what makes a place have more of a sense of sacred than another spot on the

earth‟s surface. However, as Lane (2002: 58) notes, “Place (physical), culture (human),

and sacredness are interconnected”.

Anthropologists and religious scholars who study folk religions have explored the

animistic belief that the earth is alive with energy (Vastokas 1990; Lane 2002). Some

areas, accordingly, have more or different energy emanating outward that is not found in

the surrounding terrain. This ability to recognize different energy vibrations coming

from within the earth requires sensitivity to subtle energy channels often believed to be

associated with Shamanic awareness (Ivakhiv 1997; Evola 1998; Lane 2002). Shamanic

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awareness is belief in the connectedness of everything on earth and in realms outside of

everyday perception. Another feature of sacred places within the landscape is the idea

that the light is different at sacred places, both in regard to human structures and within

the natural landscape (Weightman 1996).

It appears that there is no universally agreed upon definition of religion, much less

a common definition of a sacred place. Religion, according to Jonathon Z. Smith (1998:

282), is a “second order classification system used to define a discipline”. Smith believes

that scholars define what religion is for their studies and for their use in research. Within

the academic discipline of geography, there has been a fragmented, usage of the terms

“religion” and “sacred” since the 1970‟s according to Yi-Fu Tuan and David Sopher.

Ivakhiv thirty years later still agrees with Tuan and Sopher that it is a problem within

geographic studies (Ivakhiv 2006). The meaning of the words religion, sacred, sacred

place, and spiritual landscape is often derived from the individual researcher and includes

what, who, and where the study takes place. The meanings of these key words and how

they will be used for this research were previously described in Chapter I.

Swan (1991), an anthropologist, discusses the categories of sacred places and

sacred sites and how to define sacred places. Most importantly, a sacred place is

perceived as energizing the individual with feelings related to spirituality. The three

sacred place categories defined by Swan (1991) include: religious buildings and

architecture; sacred design; and finally, but equal in importance, nature itself.

20

Nature is difficult to defend as a place that promotes distinct feelings due to

individual perceptions in our western society. Western culture throughout America is

detached from living with, respecting, and living in harmony with nature.

Communication explaining why places are special is also hard for many individuals to

express and in turn harder for researchers to summarize in publications. When

indigenous people are asked how they identify areas as sacred or more meaningful they

are often confused by the question (Francavigilia 2003). For them, nature is all sacred and

or places are known as sacred thru stories, known associations, and/or part of everyday

life. In general for a majority of cultural groups around the world, sacred places tend to

be places where people find peace and balance, heal, help with transformation, and help

find meaning to life usually in nature and natural settings. Places of historical

significance both natural and/or constructed at known natural power spots such as Delphi

in Greece and the Western/Wailing Wall in Jerusalem, Israel which is sacred for

Muslims, Judaism, and Christians are also places where people have spiritual

experiences.

The sacred natural landscape is noted as being different from the surrounding

terrain, such as a sudden rock outcropping or the intersection of two waterways. Natural

places for many cultural groups are the most important and basic of sacred places (Boord

1994). Examples within Celtic societies throughout Europe of natural places being sacred

places include groves, wells, springs, mountain tops, and rock formations (Pennick 1996).

The same natural landscapes are also sacred to groups in Asia and the American

Southwest. The cultural or religious influence of such places is seen in the active work of

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monotheist religions in attempts to destroy or erase them from the cultural landscape. The

ancient Hebrews destruction and replanting of the groves of Baal and the Catholic and

Protestant attacks on Celtic and Norse religious sites in Europe throughout history are

just two examples of how sacred natural places around the world have been attempted to

be erased from the cultural landscape of regions.

The field of environmental psychology avoids issues related to sacred places and

how people identify them. Instead, studies in this rather new field generally measure

visitor satisfaction with views and wilderness areas or parks (Swan 1991). Within

various academic disciplines there seems to be hesitation in studying something that

cannot be quantified easily such as human perception towards landscapes, perhaps

because it involves both the human and physical worlds. The lack of both policymaker

interest and resources invested in a topic that is hard to define and describe, such as

spiritual connections to landscapes, may be a major factor in why there are so few studies

on this topic in a number of academic disciplines.

Swan (1991) also elaborated on 14 types of sacred “sites”. These included burial

locations and purification sites. Healing sites include places associated with water such as

springs for drinking water and baths as well as places of mosses. Ceremonial locations

were chosen due to particular landforms, and meditational sites chosen due to isolation.

Some sites had special flora and fauna. Quarries were endowed with specific stones and

crystals. Vision questioning and dreaming sites are places of cultural significance.

Mythic and legendary locations have stories attached to them as being culturally sacred to

a group. Temples and shrine locations are important in many religions. Other sacred sites

22

are known for spiritual renewal sites for modern recreational users to major world

religious sites. Astronomical observatories are also sacred sites found throughout the

eastern and western hemisphere. Historic sites such as cliff dwellings are important

especially in the American Southwest. Other sites may be known as fertility sites such as

mountains in Asia while other sites are baptismal sites for various religious groups.

In many ancient societies, sacred places were set aside as special, preserved

through community efforts, and highly protected from destructive forces and people. In

Greece, areas were walled off to divide the holy from the ordinary, the sacred from

profane, hiero temenos. Temene could be therapeutic sanctuaries known for healings or

spiritual renewal and were most often natural features such as groves, springs, and

mountain tops (Hughes 1991 and 1993). For much of the modern and western

industrialized societies, the spirit of places has been forgotten and overlooked in

exchange for a focus on the economic value. Some people such as Ralph Waldo

Emerson, Henry David Thoreau, John Muir, and Also Leopold become voices for

promoting and preserving natural places. The transcendentalist movement discussed in

greater detail in Section 2.8 included authors such as Emerson and Thoreau who became

literary voices for places. Thoreau became the voice for Walden Pond (2004). Emerson

who inspired Thoreau and others during the late 1800‟s in general wrote poetically about

nature with a spiritual connection (Emerson 2010). John Muir (1992) became a voice for

Yosemite and the Sierra Mountains for preservationist efforts and non-secular uses in the

early 1900‟s. Aldo Leopold became a voice for conservation ethics with a more secular

approach than Muir in the 1940‟s with A Sand County Almanac (1973). In the

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industrialized nations land often equals money and spirit is only part of the human

imagination (Hughes 1991). However, there are people that believe a natural place has a

physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual energy that is more valuable than the dollar

(Lake 1991). Many of the transcendentalist authors and others since them have wrote

and lectured on the importance of nature over economic gain. This may also be seen in

people removing themselves from modernity.

Although this research does not focus on using the term “sacred places”, a

relationship exists in understanding people‟s perceptions of different natural landscapes

both within religious text and through oral tradition. An understanding of how cultural

groups around the world view their physical surrounding and natural environment

through already defined sacred places needs to be a starting point in understanding

perceptions today of natural settings. This background on how groups define sacred

places, spiritual landscapes, or culturally significant natural settings involves

understanding the importance of myths, stories, and folklore that may be attached to a

particular setting. Often places are named for events, animals, and/or people and relate to

some spiritual story or creation myth.

Sacred places tend to be associated with stories of the origins of the landscape

feature or origins of a particular cultural group. Many cultural groups have passed down,

through generations, stories that give meaning and significance to a place as sacred or

culturally significant. These places are often associated with the underlying myth or

symbolism of living in harmony with the earth, as noted within the Cherokee belief

24

system (Garrett and Garrett 1996). Francaviglia believes that the “spirit of a place” is

revealed through inspirational stories that people tell about their experiences. He writes:

Stories are always about places, what happens to people as they are exposed to

that place…Can you imagine the Odyssey without the rugged coast of Greece? A

River Runs Through It without the Rockies? The Wizard of Oz without Kansas-or

Oz? The Bible without the holy land? (203: xv)

Some story traditions concerning geological sites in Europe have been documented as far

back as 6,000 years ago (Vastokas 1990).

Many different earth-based religions around the world believe that the landscape

is alive and that different features of the earth are sacred within their world-view. Several

of these sites have genius loci (spirit of a place), which serves some benefit or purpose

for a group. From the animistic belief systems found around the world, to the three

monotheist world religions (Judaism, Christianity, and Islamic), landscapes have stories

attached to them as being sacred or culturally significant in various historical contexts

within religious texts and stories (Eliade 1959).

Only a small number of natural areas within the landscape have received

attention through biblical stories in the Old Testament. These tales relate to prophecy at

some site, deeming the location therefore holy or sacred (Parks 1994; Lane 2002). In

other instances, a negative feeling towards sacred natural locations among some Hebrews

grew over time due to practices within nature that were believed to be sinful such as the

fertility rites and human sacrifices in the religion of Baal. These rituals often took place

within groves and springs and negative feelings developed towards these natural settings.

25

In other instances, sanctified structures such as temples were built at holy sites to set the

areas apart from the carnal (natural) world. Sacred Judeo-Christian landscapes might

include mountains, islands, caves, and wells or springs where someone had a mystical

experience with God (Pennick 1996; Lane 2002). Most of these sites are in Southwest

Asia.

In contrast to the sacred places held in high regard in biblical texts, other sacred

places in various parts of the world were wiped out during colonial times. Many North

Americans came from European backgrounds with a predominant Christian faith. These

European influences, as well as the Christian religion, tend not to designate particular

spaces within the natural landscape as sacred, especially in America. As the Americas

were settled, colonial powers and missionaries disregarded sacred places within the

landscape of the indigenous people (Lane 2002). However, knowledge about sites still

survives in some places through myths and folklore stories passed down from

generations. Some information has been lost because stories were never recorded.

Another reason for lost information is the failure of the younger generations to remember

the oral stories told to them by the elders, as information transmission becomes more

codified and less oral.

Many sites that are neither well known nor documented are not and cannot be

reduced to grid coordinates or names imposed by outsiders or mapmakers; they are just

known to exist through stories and myths for various groups. Often sites within different

cultural groups are kept as secrets from outsiders to prevent abuse or misuse of the area.

Other common concerns today regarding sacred or culturally significant places include

26

development issues, environmental deterioration, and the growing tourism industry, all of

which could alter or change the site. The impact of tourism on sacred places, such as

Stonehenge, has altered how people visit the site. Many American Indian groups are also

affected. As their land has become public or government-owned, they no longer have

access to it for performing their ceremonies or collecting their medicines.

There are similarities as to how the different belief systems of the world regard

mountains as spiritual or sacred landscape features. Many people throughout the world

visit mountains for spiritual reasons in order to gain insight into their lives or to connect

to the gods. People visit rivers for spiritual cleansings, as in India along the Ganges, to

participate in baptisms in the many rivers of the Appalachian Mountains, or make

pilgrimages to springs throughout the world, such as in Lourdes, France, which is known

for miraculous healings (Nolan 1983; Parks 1994; Narayanan 2004).

Power Mountains

Mountains are worshipped by people as diverse as the American Indians in the

Western hemisphere to the Chinese in the Eastern hemisphere. In many belief systems,

mountains are seen to connect the physical world or Earth with the sky world or god.

Cultural groups, such as the Australian Aborigines and Native American tribes such as

the Iroquois, Ojibwa, Cherokees, Dine‟, and Hopi believe that the mountains are of

significance because of the connection to the skyworld or upperworld (Garrett and

Garrett 1996; Vastokas 1990). Mountains are often seen as the dwelling places of gods,

spirits, and ancestors and many within different cultures go to mountaintops to seek

27

visions, also known as vision-questing. Mountains have also been revered throughout

history as symbols of strength and freedom.

Mountains have been of central importance to many Native American cultures,

including the Dine‟ and Apache in the Southwest, as well as the Cherokee in North

Carolina. Native religions are religions “of place in that their traditions are intimately

connected to the land and local geographies” (Ball 2000: 264). McPherson‟s (1947) book

on the sacred geography of the Navajo (Dine‟) defined and described the four sacred

mountains that form the boundary of their home in the American Southwest: Sisnaajinii

(Blanca Peak in Colorado), Tsoodzit (Mount Taylor in Arizona), Dook‟o‟oostidd (San

Francisco Peaks in Arizona), and Hesperus Peak in Colorado (McPherson 1995; Blake

2001). These mountains are associated with creation myths, colors, directions, stones,

and gender. Other mountains within the Dine‟ homelands are also held in high regard as

sacred places for vision-questing and also as locations for sacred plants used for healing

remedies (Ball 2000; Blake 2001).

The Mescalero Apache, closely related linguistically and spatially to the Dine,

also venerate sacred mountains that are important in their culture and traditions (Ball

2000). Ball‟s research significantly documents Apache traditions, which many of the

younger generations are not learning – a common situation with other cultures around the

world. Similar to their relatives the Dine, the Mescalero Apache also have four sacred

mountains linked to the four directions within their homeland‟s landscape. All mountains

are sacred, according to many Native Americans. Mountains with greater biological

diversity, however, may be Medicine Mountains, which garner even greater respect.

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According to Mescalero Apache tradition, “medicines are on the mountains because that

is where all the power is” (Ball 2000: 268).

In parts of Asia where Confucianism features in daily life practices, mountains are

held sacred along with schools, academics, and the family home (Oldstone-Moore 2002).

In Korea and China, for example, secular Confucianism is intertwined with aspects of

Buddhism and Shamanism. All three regard nature as important and believe that links

exists among humans, heaven, and the earth. In the folk tradition of Confucianism and

Taoism, rituals are performed on mountaintops. Mountaintops are seen as symbols of

stability, also providing fertility and preventing natural disasters or health problems when

venerated. Mount Tai (Taishan) in China is the most important mountain for Confucians

because of the link it provides with heaven (Oldstone-Moore 2002). Mountains, groves,

rivers, temples, towns, cities, and forests are considered sacred within the Hindu religion.

Most research in this area focuses extensively on temples and town settlement patterns

and how they were built within a cosmological view of earth (Kong 1990). Temples or

shrines are seen as economic hubs with a great amount of cultural activity surrounding

them, and they often replicate holy places within their architecture (cosmic dimension).

Many holy temples are built on mountains that were believed to be holy sites emanating

greater energy. Mount Kailash in the Himalayas, for instance, is revered as the mountain

in which the god Shiva resides (Narayanan 2004).

In Chinese landscapes, the word shenshui is based on the two elements of

mountains and water, which harmoniously complement each other (Fracaviglia 2003).

Water gives life, and land is for human activity. Many cultural groups in Asia value the

29

connection between water and land. Taoism believes that the perfect place is complete

when the combination of mountain, water, and solitude are present (Eliade 1959;

Oldstone-Moore 2003). Taoism believes that ch’i (energy) emanates from the earth,

especially at certain geographical features such as rivers, mountains, and caves, and that

an energy grid runs throughout the world. Temples, shrines, and other religious or

ceremonial buildings are built on or near the highly regarded geographic features to make

the most “use of” the energy present at the site whereas Shinto avoids construction on

mountains due to the power and use of energy (Oldstone-Moore 2003). In Taoism, there

are five sacred peaks (Tai, Heng, Heng (another Heng), Hua, and a mythical Sung) that

are highly regarded and thought to have much chi, enabling one to visit another

dimension or world (Reader 1994). Other prominently worshipped mountains in the

world include the Himalayas for the Hindus in India, Mount Fujiyama for Japanese

(Shinto and Buddhist beliefs), Mount Helgafell in Iceland, Mount Olympus in Greece,

Mount Shasta in California, and Mount Tecate for the Cuchama in California.

Healing Waters

Rivers are the primary natural landscape features deemed as sacred and most

often associated with a goddess or female divinity (Gadon 1991). Rivers in India that are

regarded as sacred include the Ganga (Ganges), Yamuna, Kaveri, and Narmada. The

confluence of two rivers or one river with the sea is a very sacred place within the

landscape. For Hindus, bathing in a river or visiting a sacred place liberates one‟s soul

from karma or sin in this lifetime. Rivers are often Tirtha, in Hindi literally meaning

“crossing over”. Tirthas, are believed to be portals crossing from the profane space to

30

sacred space or from the human to the divine (Gadon 1991). People can cross the Ganges

by bridge or boat but this crossing more represents something not physically done but as

with death, it represents starting a new life (Gesler and Pierce 2000). Many holy temples

are built or located near a lake, river, spring, or the sea (Oldstone-Moore 2003). Power

at the sacred sites in India is believed to come from the natural landscape or place and not

from the deity associated with the place (Gadon 1991).

Water is one of the most common significant sources of “religious inspiration”

found in many different cultural groups (Tuan 1968). Water symbolism universally

according to Buttimer, equals “wholeness, health, and holiness” (1984). In Islamic

cosmology, water coming down from the heavens to earth is the source of all life (Hanafi

1999).

Healing springs have been a common feature of certain geographic regions of the

world throughout time. Many people take pilgrimages to springs throughout the world,

such as in Lourdes, France, which is known for miraculous healings (Lane 2002). In

ancient Greek and Roman times people believed in the healing abilities of waters and

established shrines, drinking wells, and baths (Pennick 1996). Many people around the

world in various cultural groups, from various religions, and numerous places believe in

the healing powers of hot springs, mineral springs, and other springs either for bathing in

or drinking waters from for various ailments (Rossman 1936; Fishwick 1978; Cohen

1981; Kearns and Gesler 1998).

Cherokees in the Appalachian Mountains often used water sources for various

ceremonies and rituals. Water was the essence of life for the Cherokee as for many other

31

cultural groups. Ancient Cherokees ceremonies focused on the spiritual power of

running water. Rivers historically were used for cleansing and purification ceremonies

such as “going to water” a ceremony in which Cherokees went to the river and splashed

water over their shoulder seven times every morning. Some Cherokees still practice this

ritual (National Park Service display 2009). Waterfalls were also used as purification

places (Ellison 2005). Cross-overs are based on the idea that as one crosses over a body

of water, such as a creek or river, his/her perceptions change in order to help bring the

person into balance and harmony (Garrett and Garrett 1996).

According to a brochure by the Great Smoky Mountain National Historical

Association on Waterfalls (Kemp 1998) waterfalls “generate negative ions which make

people feel good. Negatively charged air molecules created by number of natural and

electronic processes, include ocean surf and waterfalls. Negative ion levels at large

waterfalls are estimated to be fifty times higher than at other rural sites.” According to

information on negative ions and waterfalls, people often have brighter moods, increased

energy, improved physical performance, and better health after being near the ions/spray

from the waterfalls (Thayer 1989). Waterfalls encourage contemplation and the “white

noise” created by the waterfalls helps humans relax and improve sleep behavior which is

what sound engineers try to mimic a natural sound (Ellison 2005).

2.5 Spirituality, Spiritual Experiences, and Spiritual Landscapes

Spirituality may be a way of life, an aspect of personality, an experience, or

simply a way of being for many. Religion may include those spiritual aspects but is more

organized with hierarchy, history, and rules. The spiritual aspects of a person, place, or

32

thing cannot be seen, touched, or heard in many instances but exist as a realm, primarily

outside scientific knowledge. Spirituality is impacted by how humans interact with and

perceive their physical environment, as well as how the physical environment affects

human lives, as seen from examples concerning the importance and worship of rain.

Kong (2001), describes the importance of rain for groups living in drier environments and

how the physical geography plays a role in the people‟s spiritual lives. The drier

environment contributes to the worship of rain. As Mills (1992: 28) states:

People began traveling not only down rivers and wooded pathways, but through

invisible realms. Humans began to delight in a sense of beauty, they felt the

unseen powers, and they cultivated a sense of the holy. From that distant point

until now, humans have found themselves existing not only in the bio-physical

and social worlds, but also in the worlds of the spirit and imagination.

Spirituality is more about how humans as individuals and within groups see themselves

fitting into this world. The numinous, cosmic, and aesthetic dimensions of spirituality are

important in understanding spiritual experiences we have in the physical world around us,

especially at certain natural places.

According to Mills (1992), numinous, cosmic, and aesthetic dimensions of

spiritual experiences, define a spiritual landscape. A spiritual landscape is when these

experiences or events are tied into a particular landscape for an individual or group. The

definition of a spiritual landscape, according to Mills, closely follows three of the axioms

Lane (2002) derived for sacred landscapes, which includes the following: the place

“chooses” to be revealed (numinous and aesthetic); it is an ordinary place made

“sacred” through ritual (cosmic); and it has a center that is local and universal (cosmic).

33

The focus of this work is on the relationship between a person‟s spiritual

experience and the particular landscape in question. Spiritual landscapes lie within the

physical and material world, often part of everyday life. What makes a landscape

spiritual however, are the perceptions, beliefs, and experiences that individuals and

groups have at that particular landscape. Understanding these human responses and

awareness to places requires a humanistic (qualitative) approach. Geographers want to be

able to explain and understand the human-environmental interaction through various

qualitative and sometimes quantitative approaches. Geographers choose diverse topics;

but more importantly, they must decide how they will approach the topic of their study

and find answers to their often multi-faceted holistic questions. Topics dealing with

personal beliefs can be hard to study in a traditional scientific way since there are no

formulas for predicting people‟s attitudes, perceptions, and ideas while they are within

natural landscapes.

The definition of spiritual landscape for this research follows the basic ideas of a

“sacred place” and focuses only on natural landscapes in combination with the human

element of perceptions, experiences, and feelings. After reviewing much of the literature

on this topic, it seems that sacred places often are connected to some historical or

religious documentation by a cultural group as a site that is sacred just for that cultural

group. The use of the term spiritual landscape allows for a more encompassing

association of different natural landscapes for many who visit, although no historic or

religious documentation may have previously regarded the site as sacred. Spiritual

34

landscapes are more personal and relate to people’s personal spiritual experiences at

that site.

This research is primarily interested in what Mills termed a spiritual landscape

using the three dimensions of a spiritual experience: numinous, cosmic, and aesthetic

(Mills 1992). The term “sacred” as already discussed has so many different associations

with it that for the broader scope of this research, the term spiritual landscape seems

more appropriate since the research focuses on historical myths and folklore attached to

sites, as well as non-secular use of these landscapes today and the spiritual experience. A

religious or spiritual activity defines non-secular use such as a wedding, baptism,

memorial service, or more personal meditation places and contemplation sites to name a

few. The three dimensions of the spiritual experiences as well as what defines a spiritual

landscape are defined below.

Numinous

The word “numinous,” originally derived from the work of Otto and Eliade in the

most basic form, implies that the area is full of awe and fear at the same time. The

numinous religious experience, according to Otto, was non-rational and “…unique

original feeling-response which can be in itself ethically neutral.” (Otto 1925: 6). A

numinous experience is a feeling-response or in Otto‟s words composed of a “creature-

feeling”, a “mysterium tremendum”. This creature-feeling is a sense of something greater

than oneself. This may be an awareness of a particular deity, the spirit world, or a feeling

of how small and insignificant the individual is. Myseterium tremendum relates to the

mystical aspect of spirituality and the power present. The individual may feel

35

overwhelmed and fearful because of the energy around the experience. As much as there

is fear with this powerful energy present, there is also a fascination which draws people

to want the experience. Perhaps this is the difference between “fear” and “reverence” as

in “the fear of the Lord” for Christians. The concept of fear will be interesting to discern

from public perception of natural areas. Both sacred and spirituality include the

dimension of numinous. There is often a numinous feeling at a particular landscape. This

feeling may be for an entire group or may be just for one individual while another

individual may not have the same feelings and experiences at the site. The type of

landscape that may evoke these feelings depends on the individual since the numinous is

a personal experience. Some people may have more of an emotional experience in a

desert over a waterfall setting while someone else may have intense feelings at a waterfall

and have no reaction to a desert environment. Water movements (waterfalls, rapids, and

tidal waves), atmospheric phenomena (thunderstorms and tornadoes), and geologic

events (volcanoes and earthquakes) all produce fear, awe, and fascination for individuals

and/or groups. Responses depend on cultural experiences and background, historical time

period, and personal experiences and beliefs

Cosmic

Cosmic generally refers to some sort of order, as well as a distinction between the

sacred and profane through ritual or ceremony preformed or from some focus point or

center. The numinous experience derives from a sub-conscious level of the human mind,

whereas the cosmological experience is based on ideas and imagination (Mills 1992).

People want to live in order and meaningful worlds. Individuals throughout time have

36

wanted to have roles within society. The cosmological dimension is formal and gives

meaning and order to places and experiences that can be communicated through words,

symbols, architectural designs, and/or city layouts. Cosmic is more often associated with

communication and is group oriented (Mills 1992).

Sacred places often involve organizing areas into meaningful places. The three

ways places are organized into meaningful and ordered places are as follows: (1) an axis

mundi or center of the world-topographic feature, such as a mountain, (2) a distinction

between the sacred and profane, which provides order, harmony, and peace, such as

through a ritual or ceremony, and (3) geometric qualities as seen in building designs and

orientation of cities (Mills 1992; Lane 2002).

Rituals and Ceremonies

Rituals give many people some form and meaning for their life by establishing

relationships between themselves and one or many deities. Rituals and ceremonies are a

way to contact the divine or to order space. Rituals help to teach people how to organize

space and how to conduct themselves within that space (Kuhlke 2008). According to

Kuhlke (2008: 25), “all sacred space is qualitatively different from the profane, and this

qualitative difference has to be established by human acts”. These human acts, such as

rituals and ceremonies help to distinguish profane space from sacred space. Just as

religion helps to explain how humans and the world came to be, rituals, symbols, and

myths are means of expressing the emotional powers and explaining and/or validating our

experiences and beliefs. A recent geographical study dealing with rituals and the creation

of sacred space of the freemasons by the geographer Olaf Kuhlke looked into how space

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is organized into meaningful environments through rituals and symbolism in order to

bridge the above world and below world representing the cosmos on the physical plane

(2008). Rituals within the freemasons include what many people may consider everyday

acts such as washing hands and bowing to others but when done with another intention

and awareness they enter into sacred space (2008). According to Farmer (2002),

ceremonies remind us of our connection with God and nature and also help us to find

peace with life changes. Rituals tend to be something that is repeated again and again

either by the individual or throughout history by people for a desired outcome. Farmer

(2002) warns that rituals can become like habits without the heartfelt intentions and

spiritual experience present. Ceremonies are more elaborate and may include several

ritual acts combined but also may be more flowing and open.

Rituals and ceremonies are important in understanding and learning what people

do at these natural landscapes and why they choose to do them when looking at non-

secular use and spiritual experiences at specific landscapes. As stated previously, the

dimension of cosmic under spiritual experiences generally refers to order and/or a

distinction between the sacred and profane often through ritual or ceremony. Rituals and

ceremonies are an important aspect of this study both for individuals and groups at

identifying spiritual landscapes. Rituals and ceremonies can be very simple individual

expressions of trying to connect with a higher power and/or simple acts in helping to

create order, harmony, peace, and balance in one‟s life. Examples of rituals for religious

communities include prayers, sacrifices, singing, dancing, music, and even fasting during

certain times. Rituals for individual religious connections may include the above on a

38

personal level but also other activities that give meaning to their life including physical

activity such as yoga and walking. Rituals can be seen as doing the same thing in the

same order every day at the same time, from something as simple as brushing teeth to,

although many do not associate everyday activities with ritual behavior. Eliade (1959)

believed the “religious man” sees everyday life as sacred and the most basic acts are

sacred and ritual in nature. Ceremonies of interest for this research include baptisms,

marriage, memorial services, and blessing ceremonies. Some may also include

homecomings, graveyard decorations, and family reunions/”gatherings” as rituals within

certain regions of the world such as the Appalachians (Wagner 2000).

Pilgrimages

Mountains and rivers tend to be the location of pilgrimages to be taken in one‟s

life in many Asian religions (Oldstone-Moore 2003). A significant area of interest within

religion for geographers deals with pilgrimages (Rinschede 1992; Nolan 1983;

Huntsinger and Fernandez-Gimenez 2000). For many today, as migration and movement

of people around the world is occurring at a faster pace, sacred sites, such as religious

shrines or homelands, act as anchors or centers for a larger and geographically dispersed

community of members. These centers are worshiped, praised, and visited often through

a pilgrimage or trek. Pilgrimages are a way of travel often motivated by religious

experiences and in some parts of the world are very ancient traditions. Today there are

numerous tourist agencies and others offering packages to pilgrimage sites that are

known for spiritual healing and sacred sites. A question posed by some geographers but

not yet answered is what is the difference between a pilgrimage and just a visit?

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Researchers document a growth in the number of pilgrims and pilgrimage sites

throughout the world in the last thirty years, including natural landscape sites that are

regarded as sacred or culturally significant (Nolan 1983; Rinschede 1990; Rinschede

1992; Parks 1994; Ivakhiv 1996; Reader 2007). Nolan (1983), researched the use of

Christian pilgrimages and sites within Europe, relating pilgrimage sites with worship

experiences.

The Pilgrimage-Journey in India to sacred sites trying to distinguish between

tourist and pilgrims and those with ancient or family ties to the area and those from other

countries wanting to take in the beauty and power of the place has been extensively

researched within geography (Poudel and Singh 1994; Singh 1994; Sinha 1994). Gesler

and Pierce (2000) research on Hindu Varanasi looked into the sacred geography of the

places along the pilgrims travels within the city, and the act of dying and rituals of

cremation along the Ganges. Numerous geographers have focuses on Hindu holy places

and pilgrimages in India (Sopher 1967; Stoddard 1968; Malville and Fritz 1993).

Pilgrimages constitute an important part of several different “religions,” and the

sites are also seen as tourist attractions. This tourism industry based on religion could

help local economies, such as those in Bhutan and Nepal, if strains are not placed on the

local infrastructure. Understanding religion and religious/spiritual practices could help

geographers recognize the impacts of such cultural events and places on the local

economy. One major problem of mixing the tourism industry with sacred places is the

possible degradation of such sites by visitors and the destruction sometimes due to the

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massive number of visitors alone. Stonehenge is a prime example of a sacred place that

has to be protected from tourists by being fenced off from the public.

Other researchers in geography have focused on New Age pilgrim sites. Ivakhiv

(2003: 113) wrote about the New Age pilgrimage sites in Sedona, Arizona, and that with

the “New Age pilgrimage, place and landscape became an important focus for spiritual

practices”. Huntsinger and Fernandex-Gimenez (2000) looked into the non-secular uses

of public lands at Mount Shasta, comparing pilgrims to non-pilgrims as to how they

viewed the area, used it, and how much they knew about the area. This study also looked

into the New Age pilgrims in order to ascertain from a quantitative perspective, how they

used Mount Shasta as a sacred place. Researchers are beginning to look at more modern

religious experiences and journeys for pilgrimages today. A popular modern day

pilgrimage in the Southeast is the Appalachian Trail (Rubin 2000). Pilgrimages need to

be considered when investigating sacred places due to the frequency of visits by some

people as well as the reasons for their visits and pilgrimages can be form of ritual for

some visitors.

Aesthetic

The aesthetic dimension is much easier for people to understand and perceive

through beauty and appreciation. According to Tuan (1989: 234), “The aesthetic

experience is largely a matter of the pleasure of the senses”. Aspects of the aesthetic

dimension include emotions, perceptions, and feelings, as well as other avenues of

expression. Aesthetics is most often associated with art forms and a heightened

perception or awareness. Plato believed that sensing beauty led to something higher

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(Tuan 1989). The old adage, “beauty is in the eye of the beholder,” suggests that

individuals, different cultures, as well as different periods of time, have their own sense

as to which landscapes are perceived as beautiful. Throughout history in both Europe

and North America, people have altered their aesthetic appreciation of mountains

between fearing and loving as well as thinking mountains were ugly and the home of the

devil to being inspirational backdrops for artwork. A spiritual landscape will always be

an aesthetic landscape, but not all aesthetic landscapes would be seen as spiritual.

2.6 Perceptions of Landscapes

For this research, landscapes are defined by human perceptions of the

surroundings. Landscapes can be defined in physical and biological terms but can also be

understood and perceived in the human mind. How individuals perceive their

environment and surrounding landscapes is often determined by personality, culture and

spiritual aspects of the observer (Mills 1992). Perceptions of rural and urban areas or

man-made and natural places vary according to demographic attributes (age and gender)

and attitudes (beliefs) towards the landscape (Tuan 1974). There is a difference in how

the Western or industrialized areas of the world understand and perceive the landscape

compared to Native American religions and/or other indigenous groups.

The Judeo-Christian perspective of the Western world believes that God, who is

sacred, created the Earth and that the Earth was made for humans to use to their benefit

and to some this refers in addition to abuse for material gain (Vastokas 1990). Some

Judeo-Christians use this premise and turn the meaning of it into an abuse of the Earth for

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material gain. Other Judeo-Christians believe that everything God created is sacred.

Therefore, to those individuals, natural places are sacred because God created them.

Contemporary responses to sacred sites in Canada, according to Vastokas (1990),

range from visitors stating that when they left a site they felt a greater sense of harmony,

more knowledge and connectedness to the earth, and/or personal enrichment. Visitors to

sacred places often report about returning home carrying new levels of consciousness

(Vastokas 1990; Pennick 1996). Some visitors to sacred places may go as the usual

tourist, to either see the site for entertainment and/or for purchasing or taking

photographs; but they may never actually experience or feel the place the way that the

area was experienced by natives or others today who experience the place in a spiritual

way.

There are numerous reports that document the common attitudes and perceptions

of cultural groups, such as the Aborigines, Dine‟, Algonkians, and pre-Celtic people in

having an intimate relationship with nature (Vastakoas 1990). Native Americans and

other animistic belief cultures believe that everything, including the landscapes of Earth,

is sacred. Perspectives regarding landscapes may change slightly over time for different

cultural groups, or the myths and rituals once performed at the sacred areas may be

forgotten as cultural groups become extinct. This is evident throughout the world, and a

prime example in North Carolina is the lack of documented information of any kind

regarding the Saura, who once inhabited the area near Pilot Mountain. This lack of

information often makes archival work difficult in parts of North America.

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Perspectives on landscapes may also converge over time or as cultural groups

begin to disperse from their native areas. Globalization and diffusion of varying belief

systems may actually re-ignite the belief in sacred landscapes in other parts of the world

where those living within that area may have forgotten.

2.7 Wilderness Areas in America as Spiritual Landscapes

In his work on spiritual landscapes in America, Mills (1992) concludes that

wilderness areas are associated with particular perceptions, and could be a type of

spiritual landscape that is preserved well into the twenty-first century. Wilderness usually

assumes that a large area is involved and is more of an ecologically-based ideal rather

than just a land classification category for planners, not a particular place in the

landscape.

Ross-Bryant (2005) believes that National Parks play a religious function within

the United States culture. Ross-Bryant‟s (2005) article focuses on how national parks

act as sacred sites for Americans who enjoy solitude in wilderness areas within national

parks. The therapeutic value of certain landscapes such as wilderness areas also inspires

research (Wilson 2003).

Theodore Roosevelt signed into law The Antiquities Act of 1906. The original

intent was to preserve and protect American Indian artifacts on public lands, as well as to

allow the President to set aside natural areas as public parks and conservation lands.

Since Americans did not have deep cultural roots from which to draw from as did

Europeans, officials looked to nature as part of the American cultural legacy. National

Parks and National Forests were established throughout America for this reason. The

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mission of the National Parks is to preserve natural, cultural, and historic areas. Many of

the first National Parks established are considered geologic wonders, such as Yosemite

and Yellowstone. The National Park Service, which is part of the Department of the

Interior, also includes national monuments (established by The Antiquities Act of 1906),

recreational areas, national seashores, and national preserves. The first National Parks in

the eastern United States established in 1935 include: the Shenandoah Valley, the Blue-

Ridge Parkway, and the Great Smoky Mountains (National Park Service 2009). State

Parks tend to follow a similar mission as National Parks in preserving and protecting

representative natural features throughout each state on a smaller scale.

2.8 Transcendentalism and Views on Nature in America

Views on nature and landscapes became a strong focus during the Romantic

Period in the late 18th

to mid 19th

century. Romanticism was a reaction against the

scientific rationalization of nature or industrialization that had been occurring throughout

most of Europe and North America and sought for more aesthetic experiences in life

through art. Intuition and emotions were also valued over rational thinking. Following in

the footsteps of Romanticism ideas, Transcendentalists believed in a strong connection

between nature and humans along with a divinity that surrounded the two. Famous

Transcendentalists such as Henry David Thoreau (1993) and Ralph Waldo Emerson

(2010) wrote extensively on the subject of nature and religion. Transcendentalism was a

literary, religious, and philosophical movement that believed in the divinity of both man

and nature.

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This idea of the divinity of man and nature was also seen in some of John Muir‟s

writings in the early 1900‟s regarding the proposed Hetch-Hetchy Dam in Yosemite

National Park. Muir believed that wilderness areas should be preserved and he wrote in

one news article, “These temple destroyers, devotees of ravaging commercialism, seem to

have a perfect contempt for Nature, and, instead of lifting their eyes to the God of the

mountains, lift them to the Almighty Dollar” (1912: 261-2). In his efforts to preserve

Yosemite and the Hetch Hetchy River, he also made this statement, “Dam Hetch Hetchy!

As well dam for water-tanks the people‟s cathedrals and churches, for no holier temple

has ever been consecrated by the heart of man” (Muir 1912: 261-2).

This preservation effort was also the mission of the National Parks, set up to

counter forces seeking to profit from resource extraction. Preservationists such as Muir

tried using several media tactics to prevent the dam from being built. In many articles to

the American public, Muir and other preservationists emphasized the spiritual

significance of wild places and the divinity of nature (Nash 1973). After much

controversy, the dam was built because of the materialistic endeavors of the nation at that

time and the split sympathies of President Theodore Roosevelt – on the one hand trying

to preserve nature (especially in the West), and on the other eager to see the U.S. rise to

world power status. Since then greater effort and more concern has been exerted over the

non-commodity use of scenic landscapes and places.

2.9 The Importance of Scale in Spiritual Landscapes

This work will be conducted at many different scales. This research focuses on

both the Southern Appalachian Region (regions) and the individual sites (local). This

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research of identifying spiritual landscapes from a larger perspective is focused on the

Southern Appalachian Region. However, data will be first collected on a county level to

see what similarities show up regarding the types of natural landscapes that are identified

as meaningful for each county. Patterns may arise as one particular feature is more

commonly identified as a spiritual landscape within the county or in different sub-regions

of the Southern Appalachians. These patterns may arise because of the different cultural

groups within the region or as a result of American Indian influences. This research will

look at the county level as what sites are being identified as sacred and provoking

spiritual experiences to the broader interest in spiritual landscapes in the entire region.

Identification of spiritual landscapes within the region can be applied to other regions

within the United States, as well as to other regions of the world.

2.10 The Importance of Studying a Mountain Region

Mountains constitute one-fifth of the world‟s land area and are home to

approximately 500 million people. Thus, they constitute “an important world landscape”

(Smethurst 2000). Mountain environments are unique for their biodiversity, and many

sacred plants (medicines) may be found within different altitudinal vegetation zones as

believed with the Dine‟ in the American Southwest. Mountains are not only meeting

places of the gods or homes of deities, but they also provide minerals and herbs used in

traditional folk healing remedies (Oldstone-Moore 2003).

According to Smethurst (2000), after an analysis of 263 articles published

between 1988 and 1998 on mountain research, only 5% of the articles were studies of

mountains within the United States. He notes that the Appalachians of the eastern United

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States were left “off the radar.” He also states that the interaction between humans and

mountains is poorly studied, with only 9% of the articles being about local mountain

people and cultural identities associated with mountains.

Mills (1992) discusses the lack of well-defined spiritual places in North America

today, with the exception of the sacred places of Native American groups. He believes

that identifying, creating, and acknowledging spiritual landscapes begins with people and

researchers interested in understanding how landscapes play into lives today (1992).

According to Kong (1990: 367), “insufficient attention has been paid to folk

regions...and the personal religious experience” where “the personal religious experience

with place is at least one avenue that can and should be explored.” Awareness needs to

be made of other traditions (belief systems) that look at the landscape in different ways

from the traditional Western man.

Extensive research as previously noted as been conducted about sacred places

within mountain environments in Asia and the American Southwest. This research

focuses on the Southern Appalachian Mountain Region, a folk region to some, a small

region to identify and understand spiritual landscapes, and a mountain environment

which has not been the focus on many geographical studies. The Appalachian Mountains

are considered a mountain environment and within this region there are numerous natural

landscapes that can be researched to understand spiritual experiences people have at them

and what types of non-secular activities people are actively engaged in, within nature.

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CHAPTER III

STUDY AREA

Appalachia is a place, a people, an idea, a culture, and it exists as much in the

mind and imagination as on the map. Richard Straw (2004: 1)

3.1 Defining Appalachia and the Southern Appalachian Region

The Appalachian Region, like many regions of the world, is hard to define. Much

depends on the researcher’s interest and the questions being asked. For many people,

Appalachia is known as a place with a common history, similar cultural traits, and

geography (Straw 2006). The Appalachian Mountains stretch from the Gulf of St.

Lawrence to central Alabama. The region is known for having a smaller population in

comparison to other areas of the eastern United States, as well as some of the highest

poverty rates (Gade 2002).

Previous researchers delimited the Southern Appalachian region based primarily on

various physiographic characteristics such as topography and/or elevation and later some

included economic conditions, religion, and folk life as measures for defining the region.

Figure 2 shows the region delineated by economic measures by the Appalachian

Resource Commission. There is no one correct definition for the region. The first

geographer to study the region and delimit a boundary was Arnold Guyot in 1861. He

based his regional boundary of the Appalachians on physical geography and thus divided

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the region into three sub-regions (Raitz and Ulack 1984). John Wesley Powell delimited

the region in 1895 based on its physiography. He arrived at three sub-regions known as

the Piedmont Plateaus, the Appalachian Ranges, and the Alleghany Plateaus (Raitz and

Ulack 1984).

In 1913, Nevin Fenneman further sub-divided the region based on topography and

elevation into six provinces, four of which lie in the southern Appalachian region;

Appalachian Plateau, Ridge and Valley, Blue Ridge, and the Piedmont (Raitz and Ulack,

1984). In his work The Southern Highlander and His Homeland, John C. Campbell

(1921) based his regional boundary on the history, politics, and physical geography of the

region. His region included 254 counties in nine states (Campbell 1921). Most of these

previous regional delineations covered the entire Appalachian mountain system from the

Gulf of St. Lawrence to central Alabama.

Eventually the region was delimited based on factors other than just the

physiographic region and included the cultural of the region. A sociologist with funding

from the Ford Foundation, Thomas R. Ford delimited a boundary of the Southern

Appalachians based on population, economics, politics, education, religion, and folk life

which covered only 190 counties in seven states (Raitz and Ulack 1984). Ford’s work

was published as The Southern Appalachian Region: A Survey (Ford 1962). Ford’s

region was obviously a smaller region since it encompassed only the southern states

within the Appalachians. Within this Southern Appalachian Region there are eight major

metropolitan areas including: Huntington and Charleston, West Virginia; Roanoke,

Virginia; Asheville, North Carolina; and Knoxville and Chattanooga, Tennessee.

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Researchers from various disciplines regarded Ford’s delineation as the heartland of

Appalachia (Raitz and Ulack 1984).

Figure 2: Appalachian Mountain Region. Source: Appalachian Regional Commission

2009. http://www.arc.gov/appalachian_region/MapofAppalachia.asp

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In 1963, President Kennedy initiated a federal-state committee known as the

President’s Appalachian Resource Commission (PARC) to develop an economic program

in the region. Eventually this became the Appalachian Resource Commission (ARC)

which is still involved in promoting economic growth in the region today. In 1967, the

ARC also delineated a region for their work which included 360 counties and 11 states

(Appalachian Resource Commission 2009). ARC originally divided the region into

northern, central, southern, and highland subregions. However, the southern and

highlands areas were eventually combined into one subregion in 1974 (Raitz and Ulack

1984). The southern subregion included portions of northeast Mississippi, north

Alabama, north Georgia, northwest South Carolina, portions of east Tennessee, western

North Carolina and a narrow band of southwestern Virginia (Raitz and Ulack 1984). The

southern subregion, which closely relates to Ford’s boundary, is characterized by being

historically agrarian-based but transitioning into urban and industrial sectors.

Geographers Raitz and Ulack (1984) delineated the region based on

physiographic, political (county), cultural and social conditions which included 445

counties and followed closely the Fenneman boundary delineated in 1913. From this

researcher’s perspective, some of the counties included within what Raitz and Ulack

defined as the Appalachian Region do not fit in with the majority of the Appalachian

culture and physical geographic landscape of Appalachia today. Portions of the North

Carolina Piedmont including Charlotte and Greensboro, North Carolina as well as

Atlanta, Georgia are within the Raitz-Ulack’s Appalachian Region, for example.

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For the purposes of this study investigating natural landscapes in the Southern

Appalachian Region (SAR), Ford’s 1962 delineation of the heartland of Appalachia will

be the boundary and regional focus because of the smaller area covered, proximity to

researcher, and familiarity with the region. Ford’s boundary was delimited based on

many cultural factors including religion which is important in this research work. Figure

1 in Chapter I shows Ford’s heartland of Appalachia.

3.2 The Geography of the Southern Appalachian Region

The physical geography including the topography, climate, vegetation, and

geologic resources may help in understanding people’s fascination with, experiences, and

non-secular choices of activities at the sites. As geographers, in order to study spiritual

landscapes the connection between people and place; we must have a foundational

understanding of the physical aspects of a place in order to help understand the attitudes

and values people may have towards areas. Cultural geography influences, including

ethnic groups, settlement patterns, religions/belief systems, and economic factors

especially regarding tourism, may also help in understanding people’s fascination with,

experiences, and non-secular choices of activities at the sites. For each site, the physical

geography and the cultural history of the area are included in the archival research phase

in order to understand how the sites were used, why they may be viewed in a particular

light, and how the physical setting and human interactions play into the dimensions of

defining a spiritual landscape.

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Physical Geography

Topography

Many scientists believe that the Blue Ridge Mountains were once connected to

the Scottish Highlands and to the Andes due to geologic and botanical similarities (Raitz

and Ulack 1984). The Appalachians are geologically very old, and much older than the

mountain ranges in the western United States. The Appalachian Mountains are quite

stable and do not experience the tectonic activity that other mountain systems in the

western United States experience. The Appalachians have been wearing away slowly

over time due to heavy precipitation and anthropogenic influences. The Appalachian

Region contains a few rugged mountains but mostly more rounded mountain peaks and

many deep valleys and hills. The chain runs northeast to the southwest 2,000 miles and

contains many distinct physiographic regions and smaller mountain systems over that

distance (Figure 3). The Appalachian Mountains range from 1,000 to 6,684 feet in

elevation and vary in width (east to west) from 50 to 100 miles. According to many

physical geographers, the Appalachian Mountains contain six provinces identified as:

New England, Adirondacks, Appalachian Plateau, Ridge and Valley, Blue Ridge, and the

Piedmont. The physiographic divisions of Appalachia that are within Ford’s delineation

of the region include the: Blue Ridge, Ridge, and Valley, Appalachian Plateau

(Cumberland Section), and Alleghany Plateau (Kanawha Section).

There are 20 mountains over 5,000 feet in elevation throughout the Appalachians.

Six out of ten of the highest peaks are in the Black Mountains of North Carolina. The

Black Mountains contain Mt. Mitchell which reaches 6,684 feet, the tallest peak in the

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eastern United States. Some of the oldest rocks in North Carolina have been dated to 1.8

billion years before the present. The heights of the mountains are due to the hardness of

the materials and erosional forces and processes on igneous and metamorphic rocks over

time (i.e., shists, gneisses, slates, and granite) (Gade 2002). The rock types found in the

Blue Ridge are the oldest and therefore the Blue Ridge Mountains within the

Appalachian Mountain system are known as the oldest mountains in the region (Raitz and

Ulack 1984). Some of the areas in Tennessee near the Ridge and Valley Province and

Cumberland Plateau are composed of sedimentary rocks (Raitz and Ulack 1984). The

landscape variations in the SAR contributed greatly to the various rock types and

mountain forming activities that have occurred in the region.

Climate

The Southern Appalachian Mountains are the wettest region in the country

outside of Washington’s Olympic Peninsula (Gade 2002). Due to orographic lifting,

Canadian air masses moving west to east leave the eastern slopes in the northern

Appalachian Region drier. Air masses moving from the Atlantic Ocean and Gulf Coast

leave the southern Appalachian Region wetter on the eastern slopes. There is usually a

10 degree temperature difference between the mountains and lower piedmont elevations.

It is usually much cooler in the mountains, which contributes to why many people in the

piedmont visit the mountains to escape the heat. High winds have also been reported at

Grandfather Mountain, Mt. Mitchell and other high peaks (Gade 2002). Cold

temperatures and high winds dominate many of the high peaks in the region throughout

the year. Over 85 inches of rain are reported on average for the region and October and

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November, peak leaf season is usually much drier. On average for the region 55 inches

of snow falls in winter, although this is much higher at higher peaks.

Figure 3: Physiographic Provinces and Valley’s of the Appalachian Region 2009.

Source: http://quarriesandbeyond.org/articles_and_books/min_res_appalachian_region/images/fig_6a.jpg

56

The name of the Great Smoky Mountains that lie in western North Carolina and

southeastern Tennessee derives from the haze, moisture, and evapotranspiration from

vegetation which gives off a smoky look in the area throughout the year. Also in this

region there is a high amount of smog and air pollution that contributes to the haze seen

and the tree damage at higher elevations (Mount Mitchell State Park 2009).

Vegetation

The region was primarily in virgin forest prior to European settlement. Today it

is a mix of deciduous hardwoods, pines, mixed forest and at higher elevations, spruce-fir

forest. Vegetation varies greatly with elevation which is noticeable when driving up

some of the higher peaks in the region. The spruce-fir forest begins to mix with

deciduous hardwoods at elevations greater than 4,800 feet. At elevations greater than

5,500 feet there are much greater amounts of needle leaved evergreen trees, firs-spruces,

mosses, and lichens (Gade 2002). The region was primarily explored by botanists and

naturalist early in the 18th

century due to the rich diversity of species and rare species that

seemed to be closer related to northern species.

Natural Resources

Minerals and forestry operations have contributed to the economic wealth

throughout much of the history of the region. Sandstone, limestone, and coal have

brought in sometimes the only income to some towns in the region. Much of the forest

areas in the Southern Appalachian Region are managed by the federal government and

forestry operations have had a great impact on the region.

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Cultural Geography

Ethnic Groups and Settlement Patterns

Native Americans dominated the landscape until the seventeenth century.

Iroquoian descendents migrated south over 3,500 years ago, a full 1-2,000 years before

the white settlers moved into the area. Cherokees are believed to descend from a group

of Iroquoians who moved into what is now western Tennessee and North Carolina as well

as upstate South Carolina and Georgia. The Cherokees were hunters and gatherers with

farmland as well for their maize and squash. The Cherokees lived in small separated

independent villages. An estimated 22,000 Cherokees lived in the Southern Appalachian

Region which many experts believe is a low estimate (Straw 2006).

Contact between Europeans and Cherokees accelerated between 1700 and 1761.

De Soto first entered the region from Georgia although his trail is not well known;

however, no Spanish settlements were established in the region. During the first half of

eighteenth century, the Great Valley of Virginia (Shenandoah Valley) was settled by

whites. In 1720, most people migrated from Philadelphia through central Pennsylvania

and into the south through the Shenandoah Valley. Most of these settlers were of

German, of Scots-Irish descent, or English from the rural northern districts of England.

Many crossed over the New River and turned to the southeast entering the piedmont of

the Carolinas, few crossed over the mountains. In 1761, the British defeated the French

and started encouraging settlement into the interior of North America. In 1763, settlers

were still moving into western NC and southwestern Virginia. After the Revolutionary

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War, a larger white western migration began which followed the Cherokee Trails and the

major rivers west into Tennessee and Kentucky (Straw 2006).

The whites pushed into the mountains and from this migration westward the

greatest conflict between the two cultures began. One of the primary conflicts between

Cherokees and white settlers was over land holdings and the perception of the place that

people should occupy in relation to nature began between the Cherokee and white

settlers. The Cherokees, like most American Indian tribes, believe that humans are not

superior to nature but rather they are part of it as caretakers, and dependent on nature.

Many of the names of places within the region given to certain landscapes are based upon

the belief that there is a special relationship between people and the environment (Straw

2006). The first white people in the region were hunters and trappers and many of these

depleted some of the game that the Cherokees depended on, so this act began the conflict.

Traders, cattlemen, merchants, and agriculturalists also began moving into the area. The

Appalachian people initially opposed the constitution fearing a strong central

government. However, after the election of Thomas Jefferson the Appalachian region

supported the central government and even supported the government more after the

election of Andrew Jackson in 1800. Jackson gained the support of residents in the

Appalachian region because of his push to remove the Cherokees from the region. An

estimated 20,000 Cherokees were removed with only a few thousands hiding out in the

Great Smoky Mountains region which today is known as the Eastern Band of the

Cherokee Nation (2006).

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The early Scots-Irish and German settlers evolved their own unique mixed culture

through their language, music (dulcimer and flute), religion, and politics. The people in

this region have a strong sense of community, shared identity, shared values, shared work

ethic, and strong church ties. Although many of the people living in the region outside of

urban areas live scattered apart from neighbors there is a sense of belonging to a larger

family for many. Appalachian people have a unique love of their land, and value the

place where they live. Many Scots and Cherokee intermarried; this may be due to a

shared love and perception of the land. The Scots-Irish and German settlers also are

known for their folktales and traditions which became stronger in the Appalachian

Mountains than in either motherland (Jackson 2006).

The coal industry was growing in the late 1800’s in the Appalachian Region.

Mines became prevalent throughout the Alleghany Plateau region, including areas of

West Virginia, eastern Kentucky, and western Virginia and workers were needed for

labor. Coal mining managers often recruited workers for the coal camps and railroad

lines at Ellis Island. Italians, Polish, Hungarians, Albanians, and Greeks came in high

numbers into the Appalachian Mountains for work. The various ethnic groups kept to

themselves around the camp towns. In 1909, the West Virginia Department of Mines in

four counties counted 18 different ethnic groups. There is a “sprinkling of Catholic

Churches and missions with Slavic and Italian Names” as relic of the influence of these

ethnic groups (Jackson 2006: 40). Approximately 10% of the population in the region

and this number remains low still today. There were not many slave holders in the region

and few African-Americans moved in due to discrimination and poor conditions. In the

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1980’s, Asians accounted for 0.3% of the regional population total and two-thirds lived in

urban areas (Raitz and Ulack 1984). In the 1980’s a growth of Latinos began primarily

due to the increasing Christmas tree industry and other agricultural farming operations.

This trend is still growing, adding to the cultural mixture in the twenty-first century in the

Appalachian Mountains. (Thompson and Moser 2006)

Religions and Beliefs

Although many may initially see the Appalachians as religiously homogenous,

there is a great diversity and varying degrees of religion in the mountains, as with the

ethnic groups that settled into the region’s metropolitan areas. The greatest numbers of

churches in the region are affiliated with the Baptists, with a wide array of

denominational differences. Baptist denominations include: Old Time Baptist, Regular

Baptist, Primitive Baptist, Missionary Baptist, and Free-will Baptist. Baptist churches

dominate in the region followed behind by Catholic churches and Methodist churches.

As in other parts of the United States, other religions found in the Appalachian region

include Judaism, Eastern Orthodox, Holiness Churches, Pentecostals, Free-Church,

Episcopalian, Lutheran, Reformed Presbyterian, Adventist, New Thought, Unitarian,

Psychic, Magical, Islam, Hindu, and Buddhist (Wagner 2006).

One common feature of churches in Appalachia is that there are many small

congregations throughout the countryside and outside of urban areas, with no formal

leadership. The various Baptist denominations usually do immersions for baptism in

pool sections of rivers and some do “foot-washings” in local creeks or rivers. Baptists are

also known in the region for their revival meetings. A common character of many of the

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various churches within Appalachia is that they are fundamentalist, believe in a more

personal relationship with God, believe in experiential and emotional experiences of faith

(speaking in tongues and laying on of hands), and participate in rituals which include

homecomings, memorials, and graveyard decorations (Thompson and Moser 2006;

Wagner 2006).

For many following the traditional religion in Appalachian, the sacred is found

everywhere (Geertz 1973). There are still “granny women” or herb doctors in the region

who may quote bible verses to rid people of ailments or use herbs to heal. Many old

timers follow the moon for planting times and predict the weather through folktales and

superstitions which are common throughout the region. The diversity of immigrants gave

the region a rich complex of religions as well as folklife through storytelling and use of

native plants (Thompson and Moser 2006).

Economic Development and Tourism in the Region

Throughout history and continuing into the present, the Appalachian Mountains

present a duality as picturesque and romantic or backwards and poor. The “image” of the

region was brought to the national scene by Eleanor Roosevelt during the New Deal Era

and after. Between 1960 and 1970 there was a strong trend to have pride in a regional

identity. The Appalachian Resource Commission (ARC) was established in 1963 to

promote economic growth in the area. The ARC wanted to improve quality of life,

preserve culture, and develop the region. Out of this interest, the Appalachian culture

became a commodity like coal. There are numerous Appalachian Culture Museums

scattered throughout the region that attract urbanites and outsiders who view the culture

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as unique and/or still backwards. The beauty found within the natural landscape attracts

many to the region as well as the plentiful resources of mineral, water, and forest. The

region is rich in these resources but still poor and lags behind the other regions

economically in the United States (Straw 2006).

Farming was the primary economic activity in the nineteenth century. Logging

became important in the twentieth century as well as coal and other minerals. In the

1940’s the region was still isolated for the eastern United States. Industries began to

move in after World War II as well as higher education institutions and tourist attractions

such as golf courses and ski resorts. Second homes were common in this region before

the Civil War but the number of second homes really began to increase in the late

twentieth century as land prices soared. Christmas tree farming also became a huge

economic sector of the southern Appalachian region in the late twentieth century (Gade

2002). The economic activity in this region in the twenty first century is similar to that

in coastal areas, including tourism, retirement, and development ventures (Bennett 2008).

Several geographic factors contributed to the region’s development or lack

thereof. Transportation remained difficult for many decades and jobs and industries still

are not as prevalent in the region as many desire. Many counties are losing their youth as

out-migration is occurring for those seeking employment and opportunities. At the same

time, there is an influx of people migrating into the region perhaps seasonally related to

tourism but many are settling or re-settling into the region for a peaceful way of life.

These “shuttle migrants” who have an urban residence outside of the region but have

vacation homes or originally grew up in the region greatly impact the economic

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development and land in the twenty-first century (Obermiller, Maloney, and Hansen

2006).

Reasons for visiting the region include scenery, escape from urban areas, escape

from the high summer temperatures, golf clubs, ski resorts and spas. The area has a long

history as a “pleasuring” place attracting writers, artists, wealthy elite, and politicians.

Today the region is dotted with summer homes and retirement communities from many

who once called the region home and had to more for economic reasons outside of the

region for jobs and/or for those seeking solace and spellbinding scenery. The topography

of the region varies greatly and contains mountain, rocky outcroppings, natural bridges,

ridges, waterfalls, healing springs, hot springs, rivers, and caves. Beautiful sunsets and

sunrises and unusual plants and animals also attract people to the region. There are

several National parks in the region, numerous State Parks, National Forest Lands, and

Wilderness Areas which offer recreational enjoyment for many. The largest private

mansion in the United States, the Cherokee Reservation, and other tourist attractions such

as gem mining help local economies in the region (Summerlin and Summerlin 1997).

3.3 Southern Appalachian Region Study Sites

The Southern Appalachian Region’s physical and cultural geographic factors may

influence what type of activities people engage in within nature as well as their

perceptions of various natural landscapes and experiences. The physical geography of

each site including the climate, the geologic features, and the resources present may lead

some to have numinous experiences and may trigger a greater appreciation of the beauty

of the landscape. The cultural geography of the region, especially the various religions

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and the mixture of Native American Indian Culture and European Scots-Irish

descendants, may also play into how the landscapes are used and viewed throughout

history and today. The SAR was selected as a small region to focus on the idea of

spiritual landscapes. People’s non-secular activities and experiences may help us to

identify spiritual landscapes, their importance and role in twenty-first century lives. .

The sites selected for in-depth study included two mountain sites and three water

sites which include two waterfalls/rivers and one spring (Figure 4). Grandfather

Mountain and Mt. Mitchell, both located in North Carolina, are two prominent mountains

in the region where non-secular activities are known to occur. Grandfather Mountain is

famous for its abrupt geologic formations within the surrounding terrain and the folk tales

associated with the mountain (discussed in more detail in Chapter V). Amicalola Falls in

Georgia is a prime destination for residents in the Atlanta metropolitan region to use for

weddings. It is also a historic site for the Cherokee as well as a battle site during the

Civil War. Cumberland Falls in Kentucky is known to produce a moonbow at night

during a full moon as well as rainbows most days, and sometimes even double rainbows.

Many visitors make monthly or annual trips to catch a glimpse of the moonbow. Blue

Hole Spring in Tennessee is a famous historic site once used by the Cherokee. The

research methods employed to explore spiritual associations generally were the same for

each site as outlined in the following chapter. However, the final methods used

sometimes varied as explained in Chapter V due to the unique conditions and situations at

each site during the study.

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Figure 4: Study Sites with County Locations in the Southern Appalachian Region

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CHAPTER IV

METHODS

4.1 Overview

Multiple sources and methods will be used in this research, including in-depth

unstructured interviews of knowledgeable experts, archival research, and structured

questionnaires of visitors to the target locations, as well as observation of and

participation in events at each site. Previous research within geography and related

disciplines used similar methods combining questionnaires and interviews.

The major proposed questions in this research and the method for answering each

question are as follows:

1. What types of spiritual experiences are associated with different natural sites?

Archival Research, Visitor Questionnaires, in-depth interviews, observation,

and participation in non-secular activities.

2. What types of non-secular activities are associated with different natural sites?

Archival Research, Visitor Questionnaires, In-depth interviews, observation,

and participation in non-secular activities.

3. At the selected five study sites, what types of features within the landscape are

people having spiritual experiences at within the Southern Appalachian Region?

Assessment of sites selected through archival research and the natural features

present as well as places visitors state as being spiritual for them in the region.

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4. Is Mills’ definition of a spiritual landscape (numinous, cosmic, and aesthetic)

appropriate and useful in helping to identify if we can and if we do have spiritual

landscapes in America; in particular in the Southern Appalachian Region.

Numinous Dimension: Visitor Questionnaire

Cosmic dimension: visitor Questionnaire, rituals, ceremonies, and pilgrimages

Aesthetic dimension: Visitor Questionnaire and observation

5. Does the study of spiritual landscapes further Tuan’s ideas of topophilia as it

incorporates the spiritual bond and connections with people and place?

Comparison of the spiritual landscapes

This research follows Mills’ (1992) research on comparing two spiritual

landscapes and answering if we can, if we do, and if we should have spiritual landscapes

in North America in the twenty-first century. This research is approached in a humanistic

perspective following work done by Yi-Fu Tuan (1974) describing the human emotional

attachment to places through a phenomenological and grounded theory approach

(Creswell 1998). Entrikin (1976) discusses in his article on the humanist approach to

geographic studies, the importance of studying places through phenomenology including

empathy, intuition, introspection and other nonempirical methods. In addition to Mills’

definition and understanding of a spiritual landscape and Tuan’s humanistic approach to

describing people’s attachment to place, this research also incorporated aspects and ideas

from two previous empirical geographic studies. Richard Jackson, Gisber Rimschede,

and Jill Knapp (1990) conducted research on pilgrimages within the American Mormon

landscape by using a questionnaire handed out to visitors at Temple Square in Salt Lake

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City, Utah. Huntsinger and Fernandez-Gimenez (2000) conducted research on non-

secular activities and environmental perceptions between pilgrims verses non-pilgrims at

Mt. Shasta, California though visitor questionnaires of pilgrims and non-pilgrims and the

non-secular activities they participated in while on the mountain.

Methods used were designed to answer the research questions in understanding

and describing the non-secular uses, contemporary perceptions, spiritual experiences, and

historical information about each site. This information will also help to determine if

spiritual landscapes exist in the SAR, what type of natural features considered to be of

spiritual significance are found within the landscape area, and where each feature is

located (in general terms, in order to maintain confidentiality).

4.2 Textual Analysis

Textual analyses of archival records in local public library sources, state archives,

county archives, and historical societies for any historic information regarding each site

will give valuable insights for each location. From this information key words and

phrases such as spiritual, sacred, beautiful (aesthetic), god’s gift, weddings, memorials,

engagements, and church service may describe non-secular uses, perceptions, and

experiences at each site. Textual analyses were conducted to deconstruct any archival

information for common themes or alternative meanings especially regarding recorded

stories associated with the sites. Park records when available, including guest logs and

comments, are reviewed for common phrases and key words. Only one of the parks in

the study had a guest log book with recorded comments from visitors. Since this data

source was limited and not available for each site, social networking sites such as

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Facebook were accessed to observe what “fans of” the parks/sites are saying on the parks

page and if key words/themes are commonly used in referring to the sites as sacred

landscapes or visitors having spiritual experiences at them.

4.3 Expert Interviews

In-depth interviews were conducted with knowledgeable local experts, locals who

know folklore stories about the sites, historical society members, and others who were

recommended to talk to through the snow-ball process (Creswell 1998). Examples of

these experts include Park rangers, volunteers, historical local site experts, and frequent

park visitors. According to Morse (1998), in a qualitative study approximately six in-

depth interviews are needed and according to Creswell (1998) five to 25 long interviews

are needed to adequately describe relevant experiences. Interviews were also conducted

of known group leaders who participated in or led non-secular activities at the sites. The

number of expert interviews is shown for each site in Table 1. Non-secular uses were

also of interest in the longer interviews involving the park rangers concerning what they

observed of the visitors on a daily basis.

The length of in-depth interviews varied depending on each informant. A majority

of them were structured but some became unstructured interviews depending on the level

of knowledge that the informant wanted to share about the site(s) in general. Information

collected concerning events, opinions, and experiences associated with the different sites

throughout history to the present from each knowledgeable informant were recorded in a

journal. The interviews were conducted face to face through verbal interchange and were

semi-structured, to allow flexibility near the end with more open-ended questions and

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follow-up discussion of points mentioned by the interviewee. The interviews serve to

discover relevant information from informants regarding non-secular use and their

perceptions of the site today. A sample of some of the in-depth interview questions is

located in Appendix I. Each informant was not asked all of the questions shown in the

sample. The questions depended upon their role and knowledge of the landscape and

non-secular activities and/or group involvement.

Table 1. Summary of Sites, Methodology, Dates, and Events

Method Amicalola

Falls

Blue Hole

Spring

Cumberland Falls Grandfather

Mountain

Mt. Mitchell

Visitor

Questionnaires

N=

16 16 16 17 17

In-Depth

Interviews

N=

5 2 3 4 3

Observation

Date

July 25th

,

2009

July 31st –

August 1st ,

2009

July 8-9th

, 2009 July 10th

-11th

, 2009 August 7th

- 8th

, 2009

Observation

Location

Top and

Lower points

of Waterfall

At the Spring Various observation

decks along

waterfall trail and on

top of the waterfall

at designated park

viewing area.

At Highland Games

in the meadow,

visitor center, and

top of the mountain

near swinging

bridge.

Observation Deck at top of

the mountain, restaurant,

and parking lot at top of

mountain.

Participation

Event

(occurrence)

Wedding

(several

throughout

year)

Cherokee

Heritage Days

(annually)

Moonbow (monthly

on night of full

moon)

Grandfather Mt.

Highland Games

(annually)

Despacho Ceremony

(first and only known event

of this nature on the

mountain)

Participation

Dates

July 25th

,

2009

August 1st, 2009 July 8

th, 2009 July 10

th, 2009 August 8

th, 2009

Guest Log

Books

No Yes No No No

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4.4 Questionnaire for Tourists

Perceptions of visitors concerning each site and non-secular uses were assessed

through a short (five minute) questionnaire of visitors to each site, and provided insight

into a few points important to specific issues analyzed by this research. Particular focus

falls on the short answer question regarding their thoughts of the landscape site in

question. Questions concerning whether they visited the site for religious/spiritual

purposes, how they felt at the site, and if they knew of any myths/stories associated with

each site were the primary focus. In order to understand if each of the three dimensions

of a spiritual landscape were experienced, a question for each dimension was asked with

a “yes” or “no” response expected. In some cases the respondents elaborated in more

detail. In order to ascertain if the site was numinous, the question asked was “Does the

site evoke a feeling of awe and/or fear to you”? The cosmic dimension could be

experienced by the visitor by the site being set apart from other areas as special. The

question asked in order to understand this dimension was “Is this site set apart from other

areas as special for you through ritual and/or ceremony?” Finally, for the aesthetic

dimension of a spiritual experience, the question asked was “Is this site considered

beautiful to you?”

A total of 82 questionnaires were filled in, with 15 to 20 taken at each of the five

sites (Table 1). According to a comparison of qualitative strategies by Morse (1998), in

grounded theory research the sample size is usually 30-50 interviews. The questions for

the visitors include general inquiries about uses of the site, the number of visits they

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make to the site, their feelings at the sites, if they have participated in any non-secular

activities at the site, and if they know of any myths or stories associated with the site.

A trial run of the visitor questionnaire was conducted at Hanging Rock State Park,

close to the researcher. Questions were changed or deleted based on the responses from

the trial run. The original visitor questionnaire included questions that followed previous

work in this area, in particular questions similar to a study of non-secular activities of

pilgrims vs. non-pilgrims at Mt. Shasta were initially followed (Huntsinger and

Fernandez-Gimenez 2000). Some of these questions were not as relevant to aiding in

answering the research questions and were taken out in order to also simplify the visitor

questionnaire and make it less time consuming. The questionnaires for the tourist serve

to discover relevant information regarding non-secular use and their perceptions and

experiences of the site while visiting. A sample of questions for the interviews with

locals and experts is in Appendix II.

4.5 Observation and Participation

As with many qualitative studies that are approached in humanistic terms, an

important aspect of studying the people and places is through observation and

participation at the place and with the people there. This is a useful data collection

method within grounded theory qualitative studies (Morse 1998). For this research,

general observations of people’s behaviors, what they are doing, and where they are

spending most of their time within the landscape are of importance in helping to

understand perceptions and non-secular use of each site they may not be ascertained

through the tourist questionnaires.

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Creswell (1998) suggests certain steps in the observation process which include

site selection (location to observe from), who, what, and when’s of observing time

periods, and determining the role of observer. At each site, permission was obtained in

order to observe visitors and their interactions and behaviors. Each site is different so the

selection of exact observation locations varies but focuses around the natural feature at

each site or at visitor centers to listen and record comments being made about the sites

and activities people are there to do or participant in.

At each site, the visitors were observed for approximately two hours throughout

the period of time the researcher was there. This two hour window of time was broken

up according to the number of visitors present at varying times of the day. Following

Creswell’s suggestion, this step involved the researcher observing the sites and

interactions of people with the sites first as an outsider and later observing as an insider

and actual participant to one of the events occurring at each site (1998). A journal will

be used to record descriptive notes during the observation period of time as well as notes

while participating. The extent to which the researcher became an insider and acted as a

participant varied in time but involved recording what ritual or gathering was participated

in, the number of people participating, how long it lasted, and words or phrases that the

participants used during the activity to describe their experiences as well as the

researcher’s own reactions and experiences.

Several of the sites have rituals, gatherings, and ceremonies that occur on a

regular basis, while others occur on rare occasions (Table 1). The researcher’s

participation was intended to gain an insider’s perspective as to what the groups are doing

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and why. At Cumberland Falls, during the full moon of every month people gather to

catch a glimpse of the rare moonbow that appears at the fall, which for some people is a

ritual event they attend regularly. At Grandfather Mountain, the Grandfather Mountain

Highland Games - the largest in the country - is another event which contains numerous

rituals and ceremonies throughout the weekend that is an important event and attributed

to the location because of the landscape itself, the mountain and the meadow. At Mount

Mitchell, the researcher joined a group from Atlanta, Georgia, and Asheville, North

Carolina, as they welcomed a Peruvian elder for a despacho ceremony and pilgrimage to

the mountain top. The Blue Hole Spring area is a well- known historic site for the

Cherokees and the researcher was at the spring one weekend during the annual Cherokee

Gathering of Days event. To the researcher’s knowledge, no scheduled rituals,

ceremonies, or gatherings were to occur at Amicalola Falls during her time there,

although it is a very popular wedding venue and interviews did involve people there

attending a wedding.

From the various methods mentioned and information compiled, a conclusion can

be made as to whether spiritual landscapes exist in the region today, based on experiences

people have at the sites as reported or observed. From the information collected, it was

possible to determine if certain topographic features were more prominently used for

specific non-secular uses or religious/spiritual ceremonies. Also, this information may

advance understanding as to whether certain natural landscapes are more predominantly

used in the region as special (secular or spiritual) landscapes, and why there is more of an

attraction and perhaps more documented spiritual experiences at that site than at others in

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the region. The next chapter organizes, displays, and describes the findings individually

for each site as well as the variations in methods that were necessary. After the archival

background information is discussed for each site including the physical and cultural

geographic factors that are important, the three dimensions of what produces a spiritual

experience are explored for each site with the various methods all combining to answer

the questions in various ways.

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CHAPTER V

SPIRITUAL LANDSCAPES

IN THE SOUTHERN APPALACHIAN REGION

5.1 Research Sites in the Region

Each research site is discussed in detail in the following sections divided between

mountain and water features, although some locations ended up having both physical

aspects. In the beginning of each section, archival information including historical

accounts of early visits and uses paves the way to understanding the sites and non-secular

activities occurring there in the early twenty-first century. The physical and cultural

geographic factors of each site are important for understanding contemporary perceptions

of the sites and their uses. The link between the physical, cultural, and spiritual

experiences will be noted for each site and summarized in general in Chapter VI.

Following the background information, each site is assessed as to how it falls into

the definition of spiritual landscape using the three dimensions of a spiritual experience.

The numinous experience is discussed in terms of how visitors answered a question on

the questionnaire, responses from in-depth interviews, and on-site observations during

time there. The cosmic dimension is defined based upon non-secular activities including

rituals and ceremonies observed, participation in events, and activities discussed by

visitors and knowledgeable experts. The aesthetic dimension is assessed on personal

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experience similar to the numinous experience and can be accessed through the visitor

questionnaires, in-depth interviews, and observations.

Mountain Features

Two prominent mountain features were selected in the SAR for in-depth study in

order to understand people’s experiences and non-secular activities at the sites.

Grandfather Mountain and Mount Mitchell were selected because of their striking natural

mountain landscape. Grandfather Mountain is a prominent geologic formation within the

landscape and Mount Mitchell is the highest mountain in the region. Both sites were

explored and visited by Native Americans and early European settlers. Myths and stories

surround both mountains, and early explorers reported various spiritual experiences at

each site mentioned in each subsection. The physical environment and the myths

contribute to the sites being known as sacred places but the experiences today tell us

whether each site could be considered a spiritual landscape.

Grandfather Mountain

Locals refer to this landscape site “as a grand old man: a great mountain” (Tagger

1999: xiii). Located in Avery County, North Carolina (Figure 5, map), Grandfather

Mountain is 19 miles from Boone, North Carolina and 70 miles from Asheville, North

Carolina. Grandfather lies in what is known as the North Carolina High Country, which

contains some of the highest and oldest peaks in the Blue Ridge province. Grandfather

Mountain is 5,946 feet in elevation (Grandfather Mountain, Inc 2009).

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Figure 5: Southern Appalachian Region Study Sites, nearby cities, and interstates.

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The name Grandfather Mountain originated with early settlers who saw an old man’s

face in a rock cliff on the mountain. From various vantage points, different faces are

visible within the rock formations (Figure 6). The rocky outcroppings shown in Figure 7

on Grandfather Mountain are upthrust through a ring of faults known as the Grandfather

Mountain window. Their present topographic expression is attributed to the slower

erosive qualities of the bedrock found in this region such as quartz, granite, and gneiss.

Geologists estimate the rocks to be 750 million years old (Stewart and Roberson 2007).

Figure 6: One view of the Grandfathers’ profile (Author 2009)

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Figure 7: Rocky Outcroppings along Grandfather Mountain. (Author 2009)

The mountain is located in a temperate climate with woodlands that house over

100 flowering trees and over 200 hardwood species (Tagger 1999). On higher slopes

within the Appalachian Region, such as those found at Grandfather Mountain, an unusual

forest biome containing Red Spruce and Fraser Fir dominates the landscape. Such sub-

alpine and Canadian tundra species are at many of the higher peaks in the Southern

Appalachian Region. These species are found at Grandfather Mountain due to the

elevations, soils, historical and present climate, and geologic history created by glacial

retreat. After the Wisconsin glaciation, flora and fauna normally found at higher and

colder elevations remained in the area, which is why a spruce-fir forest still exists in the

SAR.

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Grandfather Mountain has reported some of the highest winds speeds in the SAR,

of up to 195 miles per hour (mph). Precipitation varies from 40 to 80 inches a year and

the lowest mean temperature recorded is -34 degrees Fahrenheit. Other than spruce and

fir trees, the landscape is covered in mosses and lichens due to the exposed bedrock and

thin soils (Gade 2002).

The secular and non-secular uses of places throughout history often contribute to

stories and myths associated with particular places and landscapes. These stories

sometimes help in understanding current perceptions of the landscapes. The physical

landscape itself is occasionally tied into the human use of the place and this integration of

both elements attributes to the perceptions and uses in the past and today.

Anthropologists speculate that the Cherokee may have visited the mountain and passed

through the area, although no permanent settlements, nor pottery shards or formal burials

have been found on the mountain itself (Tagger 1999). However, with the acidic soils

often found in spruce-fir forest such as at Grandfather Mountain, artifacts would not have

been well preserved. An extended rock shelter on the mountain may have provided

shelter for wanderers along trade routes between Mount Rogers in Virginia and the

Carolina Piedmont region (Tagger 1999; personal communication 2009). Because of the

distinctive landmark shape of the mountain, the abundant forest and wild game present,

as well as free flowing sources of water, it would be natural to assume that traveling

bands may have passed through the area for various purposes. The high elevation forest

would have provided medicinal herbs and plants used to treat sickness and diseases

within the Cherokee population, as mentioned in Section 2.4 under Power Mountains.

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The physical elements of a site often contribute to current perceptions and uses of

the landscape historically and today. Certain physical attributes produce distinctive

feelings for some individuals, as Yi-Fu Tuan found in his topophilia work. Climates may

produce certain responses for some people due to temperatures or precipitation, affecting

their perception of the beauty of a place due to the type of vegetation grown within that

climate zone. The vegetation present and/or type of geology within particular landscapes

may also contribute to perceptions and feeling responses for individuals. Particular

powers have been attributed to certain stones throughout history such as turquoise and

shells for the Dine. The Dine and other groups additionally associate particular stones to

particular mountains as mentioned in Section 2.4. The quartz, quartzite and gneiss stones

present at Grandfather Mountain may have been a source used in making tools and

weapons as well as for ceremonial magic also mentioned in Section 2.4. One myth

associated with Grandfather Mountain is that a crystal cave lies beneath the mountain,

perhaps due to the abundant quartz seen on the surface (Tagger 1999). According to

Cherokee myths, the mountain was known in the Cherokee language as Tanawha, which

translates to “Fabulous Eagle” (Tagger 1999; GM, Inc. 2009). The eagle is a messenger

spirit for the Cherokee and the name implies that the eagle resided on the mountain.

Messages could be gained through vision quest to the tops of mountains by young

warriors and medicine men. Within many American Indian tribes, mountains higher in

elevation often represent mountains with greater power and medicine (plants gathered for

uses in medicine are believed to be stronger from a higher mountain). Just as in other

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areas within the Appalachian Mountains, the bark of the Fraser Fir and Red Spruce found

at higher elevations could have been used for special purposes.

French botanist Andre Michaux was one of the first to study the flora at

Grandfather Mountain (Tagger 1999). Michaux was known as a very calm man, but

apparently he reported in his writings that he broke into song when he was on top of

Grandfather because he was so moved by the experience of being there (Tagger 1999). In

his journal in 1794, Michaux wrote: "Reached the summit of the highest mountain in all

of North America, and with my companion and guide, sang the Marseillaise and shouted

'Long live America and the Republic of France, long live liberty!' "(GM, Inc. website

2009).

Grandfather Mountain rises up very abruptly from the surrounding terrain, which

makes many visitors, think the mountain is higher than it actually is in elevation.

Michaux was also mistaken by this assumption. Mount Mitchell is actually the highest

mountain east of the Mississippi River, a fact which is discussed in more detail in the

following section. Michaux reported that Grandfather had the richest biologically

temperate forest in the world (Tagger 1999). Because of the high number of rare species

found at Grandfather Mountain, it is designated as an International Biosphere Reserve by

the United Nations, and is one of only 553 that are privately owned (Janiskee 2008; GM,

Inc. 2009). Approximately 1,460 acres along the ridgeline and “backcountry” of

Grandfather Mountain lie within a protected easement in an agreement with the Nature

Conservancy. The Nature Conservancy is an organization that protects rare species and

communities through preservation of various land areas in the world (Nature

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Conservancy 2009). The Nature Conservancy considers Grandfather Mountain a place

of significance in the world because of the rare species and habitat it provides in the

eastern United States (GM, Inc. website 2009).

Visitors to the mountain over the years have reported interesting experiences.

John Muir, founder of the Sierra Club and preservationist for wilderness areas visited

Grandfather Mountain in 1898 while suffering from respiratory ailments and wrote to his

wife that the “air had healed him” (GM, Inc. website 2009).

There have been several owners of the mountain, including William Waighstill

Lenior, Samuel T. Kelsey, and Donald MacRae. Hugh MacRae Morton became the sole

owner of Grandfather Mountain in 1952, and turned it into a regional tourist attraction

and travel destination. In 2006, his son Crae Morton took over the responsibilities of

managing the travel attraction. Today the travel attraction at Grandfather Mountain is

owned by Grandfather Mountain Stewardship Foundation. The “backcountry” or

undeveloped portions of Grandfather Mountain, in 2009 became Grandfather Mountain

State Park. Attractions and uses of Grandfather Mountain include alpine hiking, nature

walks, wildlife habitat preserves, the mile high swinging bridge, the second largest

Highland Games and Scottish Gathering in the United States, and other festivals such as

Singing on the Mountain. These activities, events and gatherings indicate the mix of non-

secular and secular uses of this landscape.

The Grandfather Mountain Highland Games occur every July in MacRae

Meadows at the base of Grandfather Mountain and could be classified as a secular or

non-secular event depending on the participant. The non-secular portion of the games for

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some would be the yearly ritual of attending the gathering and the various ceremonies

that take place during the weekend. The weekend gathering attracts locals and visitors

from other countries as well as those who come ritually every year and those coming for

their first time. During the weekend various typical Highland Games and competitions

occur as well as other events including rituals, memorials, and weddings. Every year one

lighthearted fun ritual occurs involving a marshmallow war on Saturday after midnight,

between the “McRowdy Side” and the “Quiet Side”. There is also an annual “sacrifice”

of a watermelon (Ray 2001). The participants in the weekend’s events are able to camp

out, creating a microcosmic community. A memorial cairn was erected at McRae

meadow which pays respect to ancestral immigrants as well as community members of

the Highland Games who passed away during the year. In 2009, according to one

Highland Games employee, Thomas Taylor (personal communication 2009) there were

20-30 memorials constructed at the Games, signifying their ceremonial significance. The

Highland landscape at Grandfather Mountain represents Scotland to many visitors.

Major sites of ritual gatherings in America are often selected for their similarity to

the Highland image of the homeland. Hence, the Grandfather Mountain Highland

Games….are not in the original Highlander settlement (Cape Fear Basin in NC),

but in the uplands more similar to the Scottish Highlands (Ray 2001:150)

MacRae Meadows is as close as Americans can get to the Scottish landscape.

With the rugged rocky outcropping mountain as the backdrop, visitors “feel transported

to their spiritual home” (Ray 2001: 135). This setting evokes a collective ancestral sense

of place to many of Scots-Irish descent. Just like a pilgrimage to Scotland is less for

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finding oneself (like many world pilgrimages) but for finding one’s people and one’s

place, the Highland Games serve a similar function in celebrating kinship and place along

with religion (Ray 2001). Many people met, married, or renewed their vows at the

Games.

Singing on the Mountain started in 1924 as an informal gathering of local

churches plus a supper. Eventually the annual event grew into what locals refer to as “a

big deal” according to one anonymous expert during an in-depth interview (personal

communication 2009). In 1963, Billy Graham attended; others such as Johnny Cash and

Roy Clark have also made an appearance at the event.

Is Grandfather Mountain a Spiritual Landscape?

I visited Grandfather Mountain on July 10th

and July 11th

in 2009 (Table 1,

Chapter IV). Seventeen visitors were given the questionnaires to fill out while at the

visitor center. The questions for the visitors included: whether they considered the site a

sacred landscape, if they knew of any historical/cultural uses and myths associated with

the site, and how they felt while there. In order to assess the spiritual dimensions of the

site one “yes or no” question was asked for each dimension. For the numinous, the “yes

or no” question was “Do these sites evoke awe and/or fear to you”. In the questionnaire

there were several attempts to understand non-secular activity from various questions in

addition to the one “yes or no” question for the cosmic dimension. They were asked if

they know of any cultural uses and myths of the site and why they were there or what

activity they came there to do, with a more open answer format. In addition to these

questions for understanding the cosmic dimension and non-secular use, they were also

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asked the “yes or no” question whether the site set apart from other areas was special for

them through ritual and/or ceremony. For the aesthetic dimension, they were asked if the

site was considered beautiful by them, with a “yes or no” response.

The 2009 Grandfather Mountain Highland Games annual event took place the

same weekend I was there to interview and gave me an opportunity to participate and

observe a non-secular activity associated with the mountain. Some of the visitors to the

visitor center were attending the games. However, a majority of them were there just to

hike and/or visit the actual mountain. The respondents to the visitor questionnaire

included a mixture of families, couples, or groups of three or more hikers. Table 2 shows

the percentages as well as number of responses for each spiritual dimension question

trying to answer if the site is a spiritual landscape. These responses are discussed in

greater detail below. One of the questions asked visitors, “Is this a sacred landscape to

you?” At Grandfather Mountain, 64.7 percent (%) of those interviewed said yes (Table

2). The difference between how people responded to the sacred landscape site question

verses what was found through the spiritual landscape dimension questions will be

discussed at the end of this chapter comparing all sites.

Five in-depth interviews were conducted during this time. Crae Morton, owner of

Grandfather Mountain, Inc., and Diane Aldridge an employee who has worked there for

several decades, were interviewed during that weekend. Both of them were very familiar

with visitors to the mountains uses and behavior. Ms. Aldridge in particular having

worked the entrance gate and various other places within the Visitor Center had extensive

contact with visitors over her decade of working there. Thomas Taylor, an employee of

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the Grandfather Mountain Highland Games and a local resident was also interviewed

about the Highland Games and the local history of the mountain. A anonymous local

elderly man who has spent eighty some years living near the mountain and working on

and off for the Morton family was interviewed for his extensive knowledge of local

folklore and history of the mountain. A second anonymous local man was also

interviewed for his knowledge of the history of the mountain. During the in-depth

interview with Crae Morton, he suggested I interview both of these gentleman for their

knowledge of the mountain.

Table 2: Percentages of Yes Responses to Spiritual Dimension Questions for

Grandfather Mountain.

SITE NUMINOUS Does the site evoke feelings of awe and/or fear to you?

COSMIC Is the site set apart as special for you through ritual and/or ceremony?

AESTHETIC Is the site beautiful to you?

Is this site a sacred

Landscape to you?

Percentage of Yes Responses

Grandfather Mountain N=17 (total responses)

64.7% (11) 29.4% (5) 94.1% (16) 64.7% (11)

Grandfather Mountain could be considered a sacred place simply due to its

prominent geographic feature of being a rocky outcropping mountain top rising above the

surrounding terrain. There are also myths associated with the mountain in regards to its

naming by the Cherokee. But is Grandfather Mountain a spiritual landscape? In order to

answer this question it is necessary to consider if the mountain produces a spiritual

experience for visitors according to the dimensions of the numinous, cosmic, and

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aesthetic. Using a combination of the methods listed in Chapter IV, we can begin to

understand if the mountain is a spiritual landscape and if not, why it is not. For this

study, a spiritual landscape fits all three of the dimensions for individuals or a collective

group.

Numinous implies awe and fear. Fear entails a sense of reverence or humility for

the site or a lack of comprehension of the grandness of the site and not fears of the

mountain itself. Grandfather Mountain, according to the questionnaire responses, does

produce awe. When asked “does it produce awe and/or fear”, 64.7% of the respondents

said “yes”. This percentage matched the percentage as well when asked if the site was a

sacred landscape which is discussed in Chapter VI. Many of them went on to say during

the questionnaire that they felt awe but they hesitated with the “fear” aspect of the

question (Table 2). Upon reflection, several visitors stated that if they walk across the

swinging bridge at the top, the fear is there but this could be due to a fear of heights and

not the actual mountain itself. Fear from the aspect of reverence of the mountain was

observed during on-site observations of people at the top of the mountain and what

appeared to be quiet moments of experiences for them of something grand and larger than

themselves. The numinous is a personal experience and most respondents did report that

feelings of awe were produced for them while visiting. Many of the employees

interviewed said they often heard visitors on top of the mountain use the key words as

defined in this research for numinous including: spiritual, closer to god, magical, and

mystical. Several visitors were also seen sitting around alone or in couples observing

quietly their surroundings. I witnessed during the observation period, several visitors

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“catching their breath” and pausing as if they had entered a special place and were taking

in the height of the mountain out of fascination and fear. I also witnessed three visitors

sitting around on the rocks seemingly in private contemplation. I talked with one of the

visitors later in the parking lot. He was from the area and likes to hike to the top

occasionally to “experience god and the magic of the mountain”. One employee of

Grandfather Mountain said that she has heard from several guests that they do not attend

church; they would rather be alone in nature where they feel closer to the maker. From

the information gathered, Grandfather Mountain fits the first dimension of a spiritual

landscape. The mountain does produce awe and fear, a numinous experience for a

majority of visitors.

Cosmic refers to order and a distinction between the sacred and profane through

ritual or ceremony preformed. Under “cosmic”, words such as ritual, weddings,

memorials, and gatherings are the focus. Only 29.4% of the respondents answered yes to

the cosmic question (Table 2). The Annual Scottish Highland Games alone could be seen

as a ritual for a collective group, although perhaps even though the questionnaires were

handed out one weekend during the event, respondents did not see themselves as being

there for a ritual/ceremony even if they did come to the event every year, which could

imply a sort of ritual or if they came to the mountain yearly with family. Another event

held annual at the mountain that has been going on for 80 years, is Singing on the

Mountain. During this event, they do have between 5 and 10 guest preachers who give

sermons throughout the event. As a collective group during the event they use the area

for a ceremony, a church service.

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Weddings, and in particular marriage proposals, do occur in the meadow below

the mountain and on top of the mountain. According to Crae Morton (personal

communication 2009), there are approximately five weddings a year that mostly occur in

the meadows but he speculates that there are many more undocumented proposals on the

swinging bridge at the top. A young African-American couple had their first date on the

mountain, got engaged on the swinging bridge, and wanted to be married on top of the

mountain in the early 1970’s. Their minister was to join them the day of the event but

did not show so a local Baptist preacher performed the ceremony. The wedding was

heavily reported on and written up in several local newspapers as well as in several

African-American magazines (personal communication 2009).

Several people reported wanting their ashes spread on the mountain, both locals

and visitors. There were no numbers available for the number of ashes scattered on the

mountain, but according to Crae Morton and other employees there are several a year that

they know about and many others they do not know about. There is also a Cairn which is

a memorial located at the base of the mountain in the meadow, generations visit to pay

respect to their Scottish ancestry. Several reunions for families occur during the year,

sometimes annually.

From the information gathered just from the visitor questionnaires, it is hard to

assess if Grandfather Mountain is a spiritual landscape primarily due to the lack of

understanding in the way the question was written. A majority of respondents did not

check that they believed the site was set apart from other areas as sacred through ritual or

ceremony. There were obvious rituals and ceremonies occurring at different times of the

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year and I believe that most of the respondents did not fully understand the question

perhaps due to limited knowledge and experience. I conducted a trial run of the

questionnaire at a local site close by, at Hanging Rock State Park. However, it was not

clear then that this question would cause confusion although other questions become

obsolete and were removed from the questionnaire in order to simplify and make it easier

for the responders as discussed in Chapter III. As a researcher I was aware that a

number of non-secular activities that set the space apart from surrounding areas did occur

throughout the year. From the other questions asked in the visitor interviews that were

aimed at understanding non-secular activities, people did answer that they participated in

various events including weddings, or they knew of people who became engaged at the

site, or they were there for the Highland Games and/or attended “Singing on the

Mountain”. While they may have answered the yes/no question ”Is this site set apart as

special for you through ritual and or ceremony?” with a “no”, they often then elaborated

in the open questions about non-secular activities or ceremonies they were there for.

Upon further investigation, through my own observation and participation in events at

Grandfather Mountain it seems that the mountain is set apart as special for many through

various activities. Although they may be more personal in nature or the activity they are

involved with may not seem to be to them a type of ritual or gathering, based on the

definition of a ritual or ceremony these large gatherings are. When assessed through the

various methods of collecting information, Grandfather Mountain largely fits most

aspects of the second dimension of producing a cosmic spiritual experience. It fits most

aspects due to what I observed and participated in as well as the open answer comments

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from visitors during the interview and the in-depth interviews of non-secular activities

that occur there.

The aesthetic dimension is much easier for people to understand and perceive

through beauty and appreciation. Words such as beautiful, pretty, peaceful, breathtaking,

and spectacular were noted during the observation period of visitors to the top of the

mountain and in the parking lot. For the question asking visitors if the site was

considered beautiful, 94.1% responded yes (Table 2). Other words used by the visitor

respondents on the questionnaires included: awesome, majestic, beautiful, inspiring,

breathtaking When assessed if Grandfather Mountain does fit the third dimension of a

spiritual landscape through aesthetics, it is obvious from each method that yes people

experience the aesthetic dimension while here.

During an interview for Grandfather Mountain, Dianne Aldridge stated that many

visitors she meets tell her they go to the mountain to be alone and consider it their church

(personal communication, 2009). Crae Morton once met a visitor who was going through

a separation and had come to the mountain because she and her husband had enjoyed

visiting as a couple. She wanted to make “the trek” there and was going through a lot of

extreme emotions in the hopes of finding spiritual solace and peace.

Many visitors filled out the questionnaire with additional comments included in

the list below (once each):

Feel closer to the maker here

Spiritually-no doubt in the creator when I am here

Special place that I visited often as a child with my great uncle

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This site is perfect for wedding/engagement pictures

Righteous place (hang-glider once said to Hugh Morton according to Crae Morton

2009).

Social networking sites such as Facebook were also screened to note common

themes. Most of “the fans of” frequently reported positive, religious, beautiful, and

spiritual words and comments about the landscape. The social networking sites

confirmed that a majority of visitors feel the place is special, culturally significant, and a

spiritual landscape (a landscape that produces spiritual experiences for individuals).

Most people on such sites as Facebook, if they are “fans of” or “like” will have positive

views of the place and may not accurately capture other viewpoints. Tallies were not

taken of the number of responses and phrases for key words due to the nature of

networking sites and the realization that fans of such pages generally will have positive

things to say, viewing the comments just confirmed that people do have spiritual

experiences on the mountain, consider it beautiful, and often say it is a site that makes

them feel closer or more connected to god, and spiritual.

Mount Mitchell

At 6,684 feet, Mount Mitchell is the highest mountain in the Appalachian

Mountains and the highest mountain in the Eastern United States. Located in Yancey

County, North Carolina, Mount Mitchell is 20 miles from Asheville, North Carolina

(Figure 5). Mount Mitchell lies within the Black Mountains and became the first state

park in North Carolina in 1915 due to the work of Governor Locke Craig. According to

park ranger Tyson, meteorological conditions are known to be “wild” at Mount Mitchell

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with a one in three chance of getting precipitation in some form every day there (personal

communication 2009). On average, the mountain receives 96 inches of snow a year.

Most visitors to the park experience the howling winds and much cooler temperatures,

mist and clouds that cover the mountain most days. The average temperature is 44.6

degrees Fahrenheit.

Most of the mountain is composed of kyanite and quartz which is an important

aspect of the mountain discussed by visitors later. The elevation of the mountain

primarily is due to faulting rather than erosional resistance. Gneiss, quartz, feldspar, and

mica are found throughout many of the mountains in the region but the blue-gray kyanite

crystals found dominating half of the rock composition in some places is unusual. The

Black Mountains are shaped like a fish hook or “J” running from the north to the south,

then curving to the west (Silver 2003; Mount Mitchell State Park 2009). The dark hue of

the Black Mountains attributes to the Balsam Fir which grows at higher elevations

(Figures 9 and 10). The Black Mountains contain six of the ten highest peaks in the

eastern United States (Schwarzkopf 1985). Early in American history, Mount

Washington was believed to be the highest peak in the east as well as Clingman’s dome

in Tennessee. Elisa Mitchell fell to his death trying to prove his mountain was higher

than Clingman’s dome. Visits later, by other scientists in the region, proved Mount

Mitchell was the highest. In 1835 was officially identified the highest in the Black

Mountains and the highest mountain east of the Mississippi River (Figure 8) (North

Carolina State Parks 2009).

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Figure 8: Mount Mitchell Highest peak east of the Mississippi River (Author 2009).

Figure 9: Mount Mitchell forest (Author 2009).

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Figure 10: View from Mount Mitchell observation deck of forest and surrounding

mountains (Author 2009).

Eastern woodland cultures might have been in the area 15,000 years ago.

Evidence for human activity near Mount Mitchell dates back older than any known

Cherokee settlements in the area. Anthropologists speculate that natives such as the

Cherokee might have used the Black Mountains as hunting territory and to gather plants

(Schwarzkopf 1985). There are roughly 500 plant species in the Black Mountains which

could have been used for medicine, as food, and for dyes, especially the species found

only at higher elevations such as Fraser fir, red spruce, and red raspberry. “Conjuring”

(performing magical rites by medicine men within the tribe) was often done in high

mountain gaps to harness the extra energy and power emanating from them. Some

researchers speculated that the Black Mountains were used for such rites in combination

with the medicinal and rare plants found at the higher elevations (Schwarzkopf 1985).

99

Science is an important part of the history of the mountain. In the 1840’s,

botanists and naturalists entered the mountains to study the unique flora and fauna for

their beauty and economic value. Rhododendrons, azaleas, and magnolia species were

harvested and shipped to Europe to be planted in some of the finest European gardens

(Schwarzkopf 1985). French botanist and naturalist Andre Michaux was reportedly the

first white man in the Black Mountains. John Fraser, for whom the Fraser Fir is named,

spent much time in the mountains collecting species to send to his nursery in South

Carolina before shipping them to Europe. Others such as Elisha Mitchell (for whom the

mountain is named), Arnold Guyot, and Thomas Clingman (for whom Clingman’s Dome

is named) also entered the mountain to study the topography and elevation. In the mid

1800’s Dr. Elisha Mitchell was the first to dispute the claim that Grandfather Mountain

was the highest in North Carolina. In the 1850’s, Arnold Guyot was the first to accurately

calculate the elevations of the Black Mountains. He established a weather station at

Mount Mitchell in 1873.

The 1700’s saw a great change in the population of the Black Mountains with the

influx of Scots-Irish and German settlers. In 1791, Buncombe County (Asheville, NC)

was established as a county in the region. In the 1790’s, 500 people were estimated to be

in the Black Mountain Region (Schwarzkopf 1985). After the 1800’s and still today,

many wealthy families from the coastal areas in the Carolinas had second homes in the

mountains near Asheville, NC. These families wanted to escape the heat, escape

diseases, and enjoy the scenic beauty of the region which continues today. Hot springs

and resorts were established in the region near the Black Mountains as early as the 1830’s

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but during this time few climbers actually ascended the high peaks. During the late

1800’s wealthy lawyers and landowners out of Charleston, SC, who had summer homes

in the region wanted to build a road to the Black Mountains. Several attempts were made

and eventually a railroad line was built in 1915 mainly for the growing logging industry.

For a short amount of time until 1922, tourists took the 19 mile road to Camp Alice and

could hike to the top of Mount Mitchell. In 1915, Locke Craig (then the head of the North

Carolina Forestry Association) stated,

It was on a place like this (Mt. Mitchell) that Moses communed with God, Who

revealed Himself to man. He has given this sacred place to us, and we should do

our best to preserve it. North Carolina should protect it, and own it for herself and

for her citizens forever. (Schwarzkopf 1985: 86)

Logging heavily contributed to the destruction of the mountain as well as the Balsam

woolly adelgid and acid rain. Figure 11 shows a view from the observation deck in 1894,

compared to the change in forest cover in Figure 10 in 2009.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Balsam_woolly_adelgid

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Balsam_woolly_adelgid

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Figure 11: Photograph taken in 1894 from the top of Mt. Mitchell. USGS Photo ID

hjk00182 (Hillers 1894 and USGS 2010).

Is Mount Mitchell a Spiritual Landscape?

I visited Mount Mitchell on August 7th

and August 8th, 2009 (Table 1, Chapter

IV). Seventeen visitors were given the questionnaires to fill out while at the parking lot

for the observation deck and hiking trails on top of the mountain. At Mount Mitchell I

was given the opportunity to survey visitors at any place within the park but I focused my

efforts on those who had been to the top and observation deck. As with Grandfather

Mountain those people interviewed with small children seemed distracted at times of

keeping a watch on their small children. Table 3 shows the percentages as well as number

of responses for each spiritual dimension question trying to answer if the site is a spiritual

landscape. These responses are discussed in greater detail below. One of the questions in

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the visitor questionnaire survey asked visitors, “Is this a sacred landscape to you?” At

Mount Mitchell, 82.4 percent (%) of those interviewed said yes.

Three in-depth interviews were conducted during this time. Matt Mutel a ranger

and Glenda Tyson the secretary for the park office were interviewed. Both of them were

very familiar with visitors to the mountains comments, uses of the area, and behavior.

An anonymous participant in the despacho ceremony from Black Mountain, North

Carolina, was interviewed for her local knowledge of the mountain and experience from

being involved with the group during the event and on other occasions at the mountain.

On August 8th

, a group out of Atlanta, Georgia, and Asheville, North Carolina,

hosted a Peruvian Elder who performed a despacho ceremony for the mountain within

the restaurant and meeting room area. The day was rainy so much of the activities took

place inside, although at the end of the day, the despacho was buried on the mountain

(this was approved of by the Park officials). The respondents to the visitor questionnaire

included a mixture of families, group hikers, and couples. None of the participants in the

despacho event were selected for the visitor questionnaires; primarily due to the location

of the event and time and my sampling hours spent in the parking lot did not garner those

participants.

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Table 3: Percentages of Yes Responses to Spiritual Dimension Questions for

Mount Mitchell




Is this site a Sacred

Landscape to you?


Mount Mitchell N=17 (total responses)

76.4% (13) 17% (1) 100% (17) 82.4% (14)

Unlike Grandfather Mountain, Mount Mitchell is not a rocky outcropping or a

significant geologic formation. From a distance and on hiking the area, Mount Mitchell

appears as just like any other mountain in the area. Mount Mitchell is a peak within a

range, while Grandfather is a singular peak surrounded by a geologic window. There are

a few myths associated with an early settler who was a local bear hunter, and the naming

of the mountain after Dr. Mitchell, but no other significant myths tie the area to the native

cultural group of the Cherokee. Therefore, unlike Grandfather Mountain it might be

harder for individuals and groups of various belief systems to see Mount Mitchell as a

sacred place. So is Mount Mitchell a spiritual landscape? In order to answer this question

it is necessary to explore if the mountain produces a spiritual experience for visitors

according to the dimensions of numinous, cosmic, and aesthetic.

The site does produce an awed response from many visitors. The numinous is a

personal experience and76.4% of the respondents did report that they felt awe/fear while

visiting (Table 3). Many of the employees interviewed said that they often heard visitors

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on top of the mountain use the key words as defined in this research for numinous

including: spiritual, closer to god, magical, and mystical. I also heard such words during

the observation period. Several visitors were also seen sitting around alone or in couples,

observing the view quietly or pointing out how grand the view was and how good the air

felt. The physical geography including the forest biome type and the climate actually at

this site seem to influence the numinous experience. During one interview, Matt Mutel,

the park ranger said he has heard many people talk about the forest around Mount

Mitchell and how the forest/trees felt scary and mysterious due to the different vegetation

present that produced a feeling of enclosure and darkness. This feeling could also be

related to the death of the larger trees in the area and the “ghost forest” appearance in

some areas on the mountain. It is unclear at this time what actually produces that

response to the forest. Glenda Tyson shared that the mountain changed her after she

started working there. Ms. Tyson also shared that she had met a man camping on the

mountain who comes often and that he told her that he likes camping and staying on the

mountain because he does not take his medicine while there. While on the mountain, he

does not believe he needs the medicine to help with his health problem; his ailments seem

to disappear when he is there. The anonymous in-depth interview of a participant of the

despacho ceremony and group said she had felt a calling to move near Mount Mitchell for

several years and finally moved there from New York five years ago. The numinous is a

very personal experience anywhere, including Mount Mitchell. From the information

gathered, Mount Mitchell does fit the first dimension of a spiritual landscape through the

numinous experience.

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ritual or ceremony preformed or from some focus point or center. Under “cosmic”,

words such as ritual, weddings, memorials, and gatherings are the focus. Only 17% of

the respondents said that the site was set apart for them through rituals and/or ceremonies

(Table 3). This low number could be due to the wording of the question, but since

gatherings, weddings, and memorials do not seem as common here it could be that a

majority of visitors would not see this place as set apart in a sacred way.

Unlike Grandfather Mountain, there are no annual gatherings on Mount Mitchell.

No single event attracts thousands of people here although thousands do come for the

view and cooler temperatures. Weddings are not as common on this mountain, perhaps

due it being public land and/or the permit process one might have to go through. This

could also be attributed to the climate of the mountain. Since it often rains there and is

usually cold and windy it may not produce a romantic or logistically practical setting for

a wedding. In 2009, they had six weddings as of the end of July which was more than

usual according to park officials and more than at Grandfather Mountain. Engagements

are known by employees of the park to occur, but they do not seem to occur as frequently

as at Grandfather. Several people, both locals and visitors, reported wanting their ashes

spread on the mountain. There were no numbers available for the frequency of ashes

scattered on the mountain, according to the park personnel. During my visit, I did come

across what seemed to be ashes spread near a spring along one of the trails circling the

summit. No marker was observed but often such markers are not allowed in public parks.

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The non-secular event, of a despacho ceremony was performed by a Peruvian

elder while I was there and in which I observed and participated in, along with 50 other

people mostly from Asheville and Atlanta. During the Peruvian elder’s talk before the

actual despacho ceremony, the elder and the attendees seemed to believe from the

discussion that Mount Mitchell is sacred, along with other major mountains throughout

the world including those in the Peruvian Andes. A majority of the attendees from

Asheville visited Mount Mitchell often for ceremonies in addition to the despacho

ceremony that occurred there that day. Mount Mitchell is closer to Asheville than is

Grandfather Mountain, which would make it easier for them to assess. (Figure 5)

Asheville, North Carolina, is often referred to as the “New-Age” capital of the South and

attracts spiritual seekers of all faiths. The proximity of the mountain to Asheville and the

spiritual groups in the area is an important piece of information when assessing whether

Mount Mitchell is a spiritual landscape. This is useful information and a particular topic

that should be included in the study of spiritual landscapes. Since the group did perform

a despacho ceremony, the site was set apart as sacred and special for them. A despacho

ceremony, is an offering to Pachamama, mother earth. The offering or package was filled

with various natural items wrapped in paper with wishes and prayers for the earth and her

people and was buried on the mountain by the group (Figure 12). The group also has

other areas on the mountain where they have erected small monuments to channel the

power of the earth there. The Peruvian elder (shaman) in his native language of

Quechua, translated by a young man who spoke Quechua, Spanish, and English told the

group that the elder had dreams of the mountain ranges of the world connecting. He went

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on to state that he was connecting the Appalachian Mountains to the Andes as he played

his flute for the group and sang a chant. He also said that the Appalachian Mountains had

spoken to him in his dreams and were crying out for ceremonies, as indigenous people do

in other parts of the world for mountains.

Figure 12: Despacho. Peruvian Ceremonial Offering Performed at Mount Mitchell

(Author 2009)

From the low visitor responses to the cosmic dimension question and the lack of

information available from the park about non-secular activities can we determine that

Mount Mitchell is a spiritual landscape, that it produces a spiritual experience for

individuals and/or groups? Because a group of 50 was involved in this ceremony, does

that by itself answer the question that this site does fit the cosmic dimension of a spiritual

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landscape? The 50 participants for the despacho ceremony came to the site, in particular

Mount Mitchell, for this ceremony which does indicate that the cosmic dimension of a

spiritual landscape exists for those that attended. Mount Mitchell does fit to some degree

the cosmic dimension of a spiritual experience for some people.

The aesthetic dimension is always much easier for people to understand. Almost

the same findings at Grandfather Mountain for this dimension were recorded at Mount

Mitchell. Words such as “beautiful, pretty, peaceful, breathtaking, awesome, awe-

inspiring, and gorgeous” were noted during the observation period of visitors to the top of

the mountain and in the parking lot. All respondents on the questionnaire checked that

the site was considered beautiful. When assessed whether Mount Mitchell fits the third

dimension of a spiritual landscape through aesthetics, it is obvious from each method that

it does indeed.

This research reveals that Mount Mitchell, according to a majority of the

respondents, closely fits two of the dimensions of being a spiritual landscape however for

those where the mountain is not set apart as special through some non-secular activity,

the cosmic dimension is not experienced. However, for the group that were engaged in

the Peruvian despacho ceremony it was obvious that their intentions were more spiritual

in nature and that they as individuals and as a group believed the mountain to be special,

sacred, and produced a spiritual experience for them. Many in the group also discussed

the relevance of the kyanite found within the geology of the mountain and how for them,

kyanite was a powerful, spiritual stone. Here again, the physical geography influences

the idea of a spiritual landscape experience. If the stone occurs there, then one might

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assume from their beliefs that the mountain is spiritual and produces spiritual experiences

through the numinous, cosmic, and aesthetic dimensions. This group also erected, at an

undisclosed location on the mountain, a small rock monument to signify the sacred

qualities of that place. The location of the monument would not be disclosed by the

group and the park rangers do not know of its existence or location.

Mount Mitchell at the time of this study did not have a “fans” of page on the

social networking site Facebook. There was also no guest log book to review comments

left by visitors. However, other comments overheard during the two days there included

(once each):

Very sacred place

No better view in the Appalachian Mountains

Feel wonderful here inside and out!

I can breathe!

It is amazing here

Feels better here than Knoxville

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Water Features

The most appealing outcomes of topographic abruptness and large amounts of

precipitation is the frequency of spectacular waterfalls in the region (Gade 2002:

521).

Three water features were selected for in-depth study in the SAR. Two waterfalls

including one along a river and another along a creek as well as one natural spring were

investigated for the spiritual experiences they produce and the non-secular activities

associated at each site. All three sites have known historical uses by the Cherokee and

the spring is a popular destination for Cherokee descendants to visit today because of its

cultural history. Although the Cherokee are usually a secretive group about their sacred

sites, the places were selected to determine if a heavily known sacred site would be a

spiritual landscape.

Amicalola Falls

At 729 feet Amicalola Falls in Dawson County, Georgia, is one of the tallest

cascading waterfalls east of the Mississippi (Figure 13). The waterfall drops off the

southern end of the Blue Ridge Mountains. Amicalola Falls is 58 miles northeast of

Atlanta, Georgia and 170 miles southwest of Asheville, North Carolina (Figure 5). The

land around the falls lies within what was once part of the Cherokee Territory until they

were forcibly removed from Georgia by federal orders from President Andrew Jackson in

1838. The name in Cherokee means “tumbling waters”. There are seven cascades

according to park ranger and historian Laura Dean that represent the seven clans of the

Cherokee Nation (personal communication 2009).

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Figure 13: Amicalola Falls (Author 2009).

The first white man to see and describe the falls in 1832 was William Williamson,

who wrote in his journal:

In the course of my route in the Mountains I discovered Water Fall perhaps the

greatest in the World the most majestic Scene that I have ever witnessed or heard

of the Creek passes over the mountain & the fall I think can't be less than Six

hundred Yards. The Mountain is a least three fourths of a mile high. I made great

exertions to get on the summit but the ascent was so great that I was

completelyexhausted by the time I reached half way. My position was such that I

had a perfect view of the entire fall. The streamis called Um-ma-eolola from the

Fall (Sliding Water) (Williamson 1832, 2).

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Bartley Crane, the first white settler in the area in 1852, settled at the base of the

falls. In the late 1800’s other settlers moved into the area and Amicalola Campground

was established at the base of the falls and often used for religious services. During the

Civil War, the area was used by both Union and Confederate troops as a meeting place

(personal communication 2009).

In 1940, Amicalola Falls became a State Park. The Appalachian Trail passed

through the park until 1958. At that time the terminus was moved to Springer Mountain,

which is eight miles from the park, and a connector trail was established from Amicalola

Falls to Springer Mountain. The foothills of the Southern Appalachian Mountains

referred to as the Dahlonega Uplands is seen from the top of the waterfall (Figure 14). At

the base of the waterfall is a small pond where many people today fish, but it has also

been used for baptisms in the past.

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Figure 14: View from top of the waterfall looking out towards Dahlonega Uplands.

(Author 2009)

Is Amicalola Falls a Spiritual Landscape?

I visited Amicalola Falls on July 25th

, 2009 (Table 1, Chapter IV). Sixteen

visitors were given the questionnaires to fill out while either at the top or the bottom of

the waterfall. Here I found that distractions of watching children were not as much of a

factor, partially due perhaps at the lower waterfall walkway due to the hike there and

“dangerous” conditions for small children. Also of note, most of those sampled for the

visitor questionnaires were from the Atlanta region or were from other countries such as

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India and China, but spoke English well and could understand the questions. Those

interviewed here seemed more responsive, talkative, and interested in the topic of

spiritual and sacred landscapes. Table 4 shows the percentages as well as number of

responses for each spiritual dimension question trying to answer if the site is a spiritual

landscape. These responses are discussed in greater detail below. One of the questions

asked visitors, “Is this a sacred landscape to you?” At Amicalola Falls, 93.8 percent (%)

of those interviewed said yes.

Five in-depth interviews were conducted during this time. One was originally a

visitor for the short questionnaire. After I finished administering the questionnaire to

him, he started telling me about his life and the waterfall and agreed to be an in-depth

interviewee. Mr. Bill Tanner the park superintendent, Ms. Ronna Horn in charge of

wedding planning at the lodge, and Lauretta Dean a park ranger were interviewed. Jim

Burson, a friend of the park, volunteer, and one of the first men to hike the Appalachian

Trail when it was finished was interviewed for his extensive knowledge of the park and

local folklore.

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Table 4: Percentages of Yes Responses to Spiritual Dimension Questions for Amicalola

Falls





Landscape to you?


Amicalola Falls N=16

86.7% (13) 31.3% (5) 100% (16) 93.8% (15)

This waterfall in Georgia has myths associated with Cherokee lore and would be

considered a sacred place based upon the waterfall features and associated Native

American myths as mentioned previously with the seven cascades and seven Cherokee

Clans. Many Atlanta residents visit the waterfall resort/state park for weddings and to

escape the heat of the city. Amicalola Falls is promoted in Georgia as a wedding

destination spot. Most of the weddings occur at the resort building on top of the

mountain where the bride and groom elect to have photos taken viewing the surrounding

mountains or at the waterfall. Some weddings do occur actually at the waterfall.

Memorials although not documented by the park do occur in higher numbers at the

waterfall according to the park rangers.

In order to answer this question if Amicalola Falls is a spiritual landscape we

need to answer if the waterfall area itself produces a spiritual experience for visitors

according to the dimensions of numinous, cosmic, and aesthetic. Because Amicalola

Falls is located within a state park and has views of the surrounding mountainous

landscape, the focus is only on experiences associated with the waterfall itself both at the

top of the waterfall and at the base of the waterfall.

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For the first dimension of the site providing a numinous experience, the terrain of

the waterfall area and the height are considered. At the top of the waterfall the view is

breathtaking, although from the viewing bridge across the creek the observer cannot

adequately see or feel the height of the waterfall itself. The observer can get an overall

picture of the area by the drop off into a space of nothing by the surrounding trees and far

away mountain vistas (Figure 15). If the observer was standing directly at the last point

before the waterfall descended I imagine the responses would be very different to as

Figure 15: View from top of the waterfall, surrounding mountain vistas.

(Author 2009)

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if the site produced fear. For the numinous question on the visitor questionnaire, 86.7%

of the respondents said that they experienced awe and/or fear at the site. The numinous is

always more of a personal experience and several respondents did report on the side that

feelings of awe were produced for them while visiting, especially at the lower end of the

waterfall where the observer can really experience how tall and large the waterfall

appears from standing on the passenger bridge (Figure 16). Most of the comments heard

at the top of the waterfall during the observation were focused on the mountains in the

distance, since little of the actual waterfall can be seen from the top. However, while

observing at the bottom of the waterfall most visitors stopped while crossing the bridge,

took photographs with friends, or lingered out along the bridge or along either side of the

bridge on the walkway as if taking in something beyond them (Figure 17). Some people

hung out for half an hour just looking at the waterfall. No one passed by the waterfall

without stopping to enjoy it during my observation period. From the information

gathered, Amicalola Falls does fit the first dimension of a spiritual landscape through the

numinous experience.

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Figure 16: View of waterfall from below standing on bridge. (Author 2009)

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Figure 17: Visitors viewing the waterfall (Author 2009)

Cosmic refers to order, and a distinction between the sacred and profane through

ritual or ceremony preformed or from some focal point or center. Under “cosmic”, words

such as “ritual, weddings, memorials, and gatherings” are the focus. Thirty-one percent

of the respondents said that the site was set apart for them as special through ritual and/or

ceremony (Table 4). A wedding was occurring the day I was there and the other locals

that I interviewed could have contributed to this higher than normal score compared to

the other sites.

There are no reported public annual gatherings at the park. No single event

attracts thousands of people here. Weddings are very common here. In fact, the park

promotes the area as a wedding destination in various wedding magazines, government

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websites, and through other sources, according to an employee in charge of weddings on

site. On average there are between five and eight wedding ceremonies and receptions at

the lodge and between five and eight small wedding ceremonies at the couples’ chosen

location, which is usually at the waterfall. Weddings are often significant ceremonial

events especially when performed by a minister, pastor, or preacher. Because there is a

religious component these events are often very spiritual and sacred in nature for the

couple. If a couple chooses to wed in a court in front of a judge these types of weddings

might be seen as secular. However, it seems that the weddings that do occur at these

natural landscapes are more spiritual and non-secular. Many couples reported to the

wedding venue coordinator that they choose to get married at Amicalola Falls because

the place was special to them either having had a first date there or got engaged there

(personal communication 2009). The couples often report that they want to get married

there also because it is a beautiful setting. Beauty is part of the aesthetic dimension of a

spiritual experience according to Mills (1992) and Tuan (1974) states that the aesthetic is

often what contributes to peoples attachment to a place and not necessarily tied to a

religious institution. Engagements are known by the employees of the park to occur at

the waterfall. Park employees also report that perhaps due to the lodge and ease of

having everything on site, people choose to get married here or celebrate honeymoons

and anniversaries within the park.

Several people reported wanting their ashes spread in the area, both by locals and

visitors. As with many waterfalls throughout the world, suicides have occurred. Since

1940, Amicalola Falls was the location for 13 suicides. Some of the family members of

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those who fell off the waterfall return to the park annually. At the anniversary date of

when a young man committed suicide, the family gathers at the waterfall to pay their

respects (Tanner 2009). There was a memorial area sit up away from the waterfall out of

site by the park rangers and most visitors (Figure 18). The park rangers said that they

knew of memorials and spreading of ashes at the waterfall but no records are kept of such

activities. The park superintendent also once found a backpacker’s bag with a box of

ashes in it, hung in a tree by the waterfall.

Figure 18: Memorial at Amicalola Falls (Author 2009).

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At the lower pool at the bottom of the waterfalls and cascades, local churches

traditionally held camp meetings and conducted baptisms, although this is less frequent

than it used to be according to rangers. In addition to weddings and memorials there is

another peculiar event for some that occurs at the top pool of the waterfall, downstream

of the foot bridge. One ranger reported that many visitors throw coins in and make

wishes at the pool at the head of the waterfall downstream of the viewing deck and

walkway (Figure 19). Figure 20 shows the amount of coins present in the pool the day I

visited the site. While observing at the site, I witnessed several small children as well as

adults throwing money in the pool. Many visitors threw in pennies and other coins off

the bridge, for various reasons. One visitor said that she threw a penny in every time she

came to the site for good luck, while another visitor said that he threw coins in just to

amuse his children. Without consciously realizing what they are exactly doing, many

people often throw coins into water as part of a prayer or wish, something often learned

from childhood and simply repeated for amusement. If a prayer or wish is involved,

without perhaps considering it on one level, the individual is petitioning a higher power

which is a spiritual phenomenon (Jones 1964; Hole 1970). Often many of the more

common wishing wells, where people leave offerings and make wishes, were sacred sites

where people came in true devotion (Horne 1923). Many who visit places and make

offerings such as throwing coins in are not actuated by religious motives, yet the action is

an interesting “reversion to heathen beliefs, unrecognized though they may be by those

who offer their pins or coins” (Hole 1970: 2687).

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Figure 19: Pool downstream of bridge at start of waterfall (Author 2009).

Figure 20: Pennies and other coins in the pool at top of waterfall (Author 2009)

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Other interesting ceremonies and rituals occur at this location, such as family

reunions. In 2003 and 2004, an Easter Sunrise Service occurred with about 35 local

people. Groups from the Atlanta area visit on certain occasions to play musical

instruments at the falls according to the park superintendent Bill Tanner (2009). Other

locals with Cherokee heritage reported that they visit the waterfalls to meditate and do

private clearing ceremonies. One gentleman reported that he walks the stairs every

morning as part of his daily ritual.

Only five of the respondents answered “yes” when asked if the site was set apart

from other areas a special through ritual and/or ceremony. Again, this could have been

due to the wording of the question, but it is known that there are several weddings here

every month, although only a few occur at the waterfall.

From observation and an in-depth interview, one man in his late 50’s runs the

steps near the waterfall every day. He informed me that five years ago his doctor told

him that he had several health issues and needed to change his lifestyle. He was also

going through a difficult end to a long marriage. While in his car after leaving the

doctor’s office, he had what he called some “inner guidance” and was urged to visit

Amicalola Falls. That day he set out to walk the stairs from the base and although he was

in poor shape at the time he managed to walk the 500 some steps to the waterfall and runs

the steps today. He explained to me that he lived nearby and had never visited the

waterfall, but on that day after leaving the doctor’s office something, or as he laughingly

said perhaps the waterfall, spoke to him to visit to heal his life. He calls himself a

Christian and he believes God somehow spoke to him that day. He lost 100 pounds the

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natural way and from looking at him I would never have thought that he was in poor

health years before. He speaks to many of the visitors in his breaks during his run of the

steps, which is stated is one of the best parts of being there, meeting interesting people.

There are many daily and weekly “runners” of the stairs at the falls but none of them told

me their story of how and why they run the stairs, so there could be others stories similar

to his. Amicalola Falls does fit to some degree the cosmic dimension of a spiritual

experience for some people that are involved in the various non-secular activities present

here.

The aesthetic dimension is always much easier for people to understand. All

respondents on the questionnaire checked that the site was considered beautiful. Visitors

were overheard saying how beautiful the waterfall area was during the observation period

at the waterfall and in the lodge during the in-depth interviews. When assessing whether

Amicalola Falls fits the third dimension of a spiritual landscape through aesthetics, it is

obvious from each method that it does indeed do so.

It seems from the various methods that Amicalola Falls, according to a majority

of the respondents, it does fit the three dimensions of being a spiritual landscape. Other

interesting responses on the visitor questionnaires and heard through observation include

(once for each):

Nature is easier to commune with

Easy to get quiet here and listen

Closer to natural world

Love the sound of rushing water, calms me

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Began and continues for eternity (the waterfall)

Calming

Universe showing power here

Very relaxed

Enjoy sounds of running water

In a wedding here

Peaceful

No civilization, wild here

Happy.

Blue Hole Spring

Blue Hole Spring, also known as Council Spring is located 25 miles east of

Chattanooga, Tennessee, near Cleveland, Tennessee, in Bradley County. The spring is

located 300 yards north of the Tennessee/Georgia state line (Figure 5). Information

regarding Blue Hole Spring is extremely limited. The site is part of Red Clay Historic

State Park but little is known of the actual spring’s use. The spring also known as

Council Spring is historically significant for the Cherokee Nation because the last capital

of the Cherokee Nation in the East was located in sight of the spring. The site was

chosen for the capital for several reasons, but mainly because it was just over the state

line and close to the old Capital Echota in Georgia and also because of the springs in the

area

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Prior to the Cherokee, a tribe of American Indians known as the Yuchi (Euchee)

were identified to have lived in the acre according to archeologists from the University of

Tennessee at Knoxville and Indiana University (Corn 1959). The area where the spring

is located is in a beautiful green valley that was used by the Cherokee and the Yuchi for

farming. Written history of this area is limited (Corn 1959).

Red Clay Historic Site was the location of the last Cherokee Capital prior to

removal of the Cherokees from the east. The Cherokee elected to move their capital from

Georgia to Tennessee to escape General Andrew Jackson federal troops’ persecution. A

group met at the site of Red Clay for periods of time between July and August of 1837 to

determine how to agree to the United States government treaties about their land and

removal (Lillard 1976). The spring area served as the Cherokee Supreme Court (Van

West 1995). An estimated 5,000 Cherokees with eleven general councils met at this site

(Van West 1995). The final goodbye for many Cherokees occurred at this site and the

Trail of Tears begins near here (1959).

The spring itself was believed to have been a water source during council

meetings and why the council house was located nearby, east of the spring (Lillard 1976).

The spring was referred to as the great spring (Lillard 1976). The spring is in a bowl-like

depression and a deep blue color due to the depth and limestone bedrock feeding the

spring (Figure 21). The spring is estimated to produce 4000 gallons of water daily (Van

West 1995). Natural springs are important landmarks throughout many different regions

of the world and often have some myth or spiritual connection to them (Van West 1995).

Council spring, locally known as Blue Hole Spring (also known as Blue Hole on the

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Tennessee State Park website (Tennessee State Parks, 2009) is a pure running spring that

attracted Cherokees to the area (O’Brien 1990). In an in-depth interview with Park

Ranger Amber Meadows, she discussed how the Cherokee recognized the spring as a

spiritual space and a break between worlds. As discussed previously in Chapter II,

springs were believed to link the underworld with this world and various myths are

associated with springs throughout the world. According to Ms. Meadows, the springs

blue color comes from the high copper and mineral content from the limestone bedrock

leaching out into the water. The spring although it may look shallow from the bridge is

14 feet deep. According to the Cherokee other than the spring being a water source, it

was also important for ceremonies such as going to water for spiritual cleansing.

Anytime a member of the tribe was going through a great change, before or after

shedding blood, or major decisions in their life they often would go to the water such as a

spring to contemplate and receive answers (personal communication 2009).

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Figure 21: Blue Hole Spring/Council Spring photograph taken from bridge (Author 2009)

Is Blue Hole Spring a Spiritual Landscape?

Blue Hole Spring was visited on July 31st and August 1

st, 2009 (Table 1, Chapter

IV). Sixteen visitors were given the questionnaires to fill out while at the spring. Here I

found that distractions of watching children was a factor in some parents answering the

questionnaire, because children kept getting into the stream and some were trying to hang

off the bridge and get into the spring. There were several children at this site, perhaps

due to one day being the Cherokee Heritage Day Festival. Surprisingly, even though my

visit was the day before and the day of the Cherokee festival, only four of the visitors that

filled out the questionnaire were full blooded Cherokees. This site could be a place of

unhappy memories and associations for some Cherokee descendants. The festival

seemed more for the non-Cherokee people to witness traditional song and dance of the

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Cherokee and shop for gifts made by Cherokees. This observation may be just for this

site but it could be true for a lot of Native American festivals in the Eastern United States.

Table 5 shows the percentages as well as number of responses for each spiritual

dimension question trying to answer if the site is a spiritual landscape. These responses

are discussed in greater detail below.

One of the questions asked visitors, “Is this a sacred landscape to you?” At Blue

Hole Spring, 100 percent (%) of those interviewed said yes. Even though all of the

respondents said the site was a sacred landscape it was never clear if the actual spring

itself was considered sacred or if those answering the questionnaire thought the entire

park area and council grounds were sacred. No distinction was made on the

questionnaire and since the question was asked at the spring I would have assumed the

responses would have focused on the spring itself but it is hard to ascertain what those

answering were really thinking about with that question. The site and park is a sacred

site historically for the Cherokee and a Historic Site for the state of Tennessee.

Two in-depth interviews were conducted during the visit: with Amber Meadows

the park historian and ranger, and Dr. Michael Abrams, M.D., a Cherokee expert from

the Cherokee Museum in Cherokee, North Carolina, who was recommended for an in-

depth interview by Ms. Meadows for his involvement with the park and historical

knowledge of Cherokee myths and the spring.

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Table 5: Percentages of Yes Responses to Spiritual Dimension Questions for Blue Hole

Spring





Landscape to you?


Blue Hole Spring N=16

25% (4) 18.8% (3) 87.5% (14) 100% (16)

The numinous is a personal experience and only 25% of the respondents reported

that feelings of awe were produced for them while visiting. During my observation time

I heard many visitors exclaim whisper how wonderful the spring was. The park ranger,

Amber Meadows reported that has heard visitors say they felt drawn to the spring, dreamt

or felt like they needed to visit it, and it makes them feel calm and peaceful (personal

communication 2009).

Most visitors during the day were walking around the historic buildings and area

and would briefly walk by the spring. A few visitors stopped and would stare at the

spring for a few minutes but on average most visitors were only at the spring for 5

minutes. Some with families stayed longer only because their children were playing in

the stream downstream from the spring. People are not allowed in the spring but are

allowed in the stream. For the numinous experience although the visitors responded with

a low percentage of yes they felt awe when at the site the visitor log book records gave

more insight into the numinous experience visitors had there. The following list was

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generated from tallying the number of times each word was said in the guest log book

from July 12th

, 2007 to July 2nd

, 2008.

Unbelievable (1)

Hidden treasure (1)

Sobering (1)

Power and presence (1)

Enlightening (1)

Thank you, Great Spirit (1)

Enigmatic (1)

Touched (1)

Peaceful (4)

A quiet, gentle place very spiritual and very moving (1)

Sacred place (1)

From the guest log books for 2009 beginning in January 2009 up until when I was

there at the end of July 2009 the following comments were recorded.

Spiritually awakening from a visitor in Rome, Georgia (1)

Very moving (1)

Earth blessing (1)

Feel at home (1)

Inspiring (1)

Spiritual place from a visitor in Tazwell, Tennessee (1)

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Relaxing (1)

Impressive (1)

Walking in water here is wonderful (1)

Love it here (19)

There were many comments written in Cherokee. Other noteworthy comments in other

years included.

Touches soul (1)

Emotionally moving (1)

Sacred ground-heart teaching place (1)

Very special, spiritual place of beauty (1)

Makes you feel close to God (1)

The water is healing (1)

Coming here for 25 years for peace and tranquility

In July of 2000 a visitor wrote: come every year and find it a very spiritual and healing

place. Red Clay is a place of peace; it is a place where one can have a private spiritual

moment with Self and God. Sacred Place hope people treat as so. From the various

comments in the guest log book we can infer that the place does produce a numinous

experience for some visitors.


ritual or ceremony preformed or from some focus point or center. At Blue Hole Spring,

18.8% of the visitors questioned responded that the site was set apart as special through

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ritual/ceremony. This number seems to be an accurate representation from talking to

Amber Meadows and Dr. Michael Abrams.

From the in-depth interviews it is known that weddings to occur within the park

and at the spring every year. Most of the weddings are very informal and very small with

most couples claiming Native American ancestry. Amber Meadows knows of one

woman who comes twice a year to honor ancestors at the spring and leaves small

offerings. On July 4th

, 2009 in the guest log book one visitor wrote they had renewed

their vows there, the previous day July 3rd

, 2009 a couple had gotten married at the site.

There is also a man in the area that has permission to collect water from the spring to use

at a local church for baptisms. There are also others who visit from the Cherokee

Reservation in North Carolina an hour away to collect water. Dr. Abrams elaborated on

the fact that one has to know how to collect water from a healing spring such as Blue

Hole. There is a certain ceremony in which prayers are said in Cherokee, offerings are

left, and permission is asked of the water before the water can be used for “good

medicine”. Not everyone knows the ceremony. He has taken five gallons of the water

himself to an elderly medicine man in Cherokee, North Carolina who uses the water

mixed with herbs for medicinal teas for patients. Dr. Abrams visits the spring several

times a year and at the Annual Gathering of Cherokee Days at the park for 20 years he

has watched as he refers to them “white people oh and ahh at the spring for it being

pretty, peaceful, and cool” but according to him that could be any spring. The young

Cherokees have forgotten about the Cherokee traditions such as going to water, collecting

sacred water, and praying near water because “they live in the white world and don’t

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show respect”. He believes many today do not visit the spring for the reasons they once

did because they have forgotten. The cosmic dimension of Blue Hole Spring may have

been at one time truly a landscape that was set aside as special through ceremony but that

seems to a spiritual experience for many in the twenty first century at this location that is

losing its importance.

The aesthetic dimension of Blue Hole Spring was easily answered through the

visitor questionnaire, with a response of 87.5% that considered it as beautiful. One

question I have with this is I wonder if those answering were thinking about the spring

area itself or the entire park? Looking over the guest log books again From July 12th

,

2007, to July 2nd

, 2008, 83 visitors used the words wonderful, fantastic, beautiful, pretty,

or nice. From January 1st t ill July 31

st, 2009, 32 visitors had written beautiful place.

When assessed if Blue Hole Spring fits the third dimension of a spiritual landscape

through aesthetics, it is hard to answer because of discrepancies in understanding if

people were talking about the spring in the visitor guest books or the park itself.

The landscape of Red Clay Historic Park and Blue Hole Spring is considered a

sacred landscape to a group of people. However, we cannot assume that the spring itself

is considered a sacred landscape, it may be the entire landscape site from the Cherokee

history of the area. From the way this research investigated landscapes and the

peculiarities of this site being a natural feature and a historic site, it is hard to conclude if

the spring is sacred. Is Blue Hole Spring a spiritual landscape? Again, this question is

very hard to answer at this site due to the historical use of the surrounding landscape.

This is a site where it seems a very personal experience as to if the spring itself is sacred

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and produces numinous, cosmic, and aesthetic experiences for people at the site. Most of

those with Native American ancestry will probably say the site is sacred and contributes

to a spiritual experience.

Cumberland Falls

Cumberland Falls is located in Whitley County, Kentucky, approximately 40

miles north of Burnside and 27 miles south of William (Figure 5, map). This waterfall is

known for the phenomenon that happens only during a full moon at night in which a

moon bow may be observed. This is the only known site in the western hemisphere

where this occurs according to signs within the park. The other site in the world that

produces a moonbow is Victoria Falls in Zimbabwe, Africa. Scientists believe that the

moonbow is produced from the moonlight being refracted from the mist rising from the

pool below the fall. The chances of seeing a moonbow are much better on a bright,

moonlit cloudless night, usually three days before or after the full moon. Cumberland

Falls’ orientation and minimum forest cover around the falls, as well as the mist and

wind patterns, is believed to contribute to the moonbow phenomenon observed. The

colors of a moonbow are often not as vivid as those of a rainbow, and to many onlookers

the moonbow looks like only white light. During the day, a single or double rainbow

may be observed from below the waterfall.

Cumberland Falls, also known as “The Niagara of the South” perhaps because of

its horseshoe shape as much as by its size, is the largest waterfall south of Niagara and

east of the Rocky Mountains. The waterfall varies in height depending upon the river

level but is usually between 55 and 68 feet (Figure 22). The width of the waterfall also

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varies depending upon the river level and averages 125 feet but during high flows has

been reported to be 300 feet wide. The drainage area is 1,900 square miles (sq. mi.) and

the discharge varies between 4 cubic feet per second (cfs) to 59,600 cfs (McGrain, 1983).

There is a massive amount of water moving in the Cumberland River over this waterfall

which contributes to its size and beauty.

Figure 22: Cumberland Falls view from downstream. (Author 2009).

The waterfall is along the Cumberland River, at one time known as the Shawnee

River. The river flows through the Cumberland Mountains and near the Cumberland

Escarpment. The waterfall was formed over thousands of years by processes of erosion

and uplifting, primarily water action (McGrain 1983). At one time much of the

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Appalachian Mountains were under a sea. Over time sediments were deposited and layers

of material collected on the bottom of the sea floor. The sediment material deposited was

originally for other land masses. This process occurs throughout the world even today

but at one time in geologic history the region in the Appalachian Mountains experienced

this kind of deposition. As the seas withdrew and the land uplifted, the sediment present

converted into rock material. Over millions of years, the Cumberland River cut through

and formed the current V-shaped valley. The softer rock materials were easily eroded

which created Cumberland Falls. The waterfall was formed from an undermining of

sandstone rock layers in the valley. The valley exposes alternating layers of hard and soft

sedimentary rocks. A change in bedrock resistance from hard to soft rock formed the

ledge or nickpoint which became the initial falls. Active downcutting of the softer

sandstones to a harder rock layer produced the abrupt elevation change along the river.

The variable between the different types of sandstones is what maintains the waterfall

(McFarlan 1961). Over long periods of time, the harder resistant rock layer slowly

erodes as well due to the weight of the rock materials hanging on the ledge and the forces

of erosion and weathering primarily due to water action. Freezing and thawing within the

joints of the bedrock is also contributing to the weathering process here (McGrain 1983).

The bedrock along the walls of the valley is weathering faster than the lip of the waterfall

due to extensive weathering and erosive forces (1983). The waterfall is moving slowly

upstream due to the erosion and weathering processes occurring. Over time the nickpoint

migrated upstream as the ledge continues to waste away. Geologists believe the

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waterfall has retreated 45 miles upstream (McConnell 1983; Kentucky Park Service

2009).

The Native Americans in the region were believed to have temporary hunting

camps near the falls from early summer to fall. Native American tribes included the

Shawnee, Cherokee, Chickasaw, and Creek. Cumberland Falls and Eagle Falls nearby

were regarded as sacred by many of these tribes (KPS 2009). Both falls were used as a

place of worship by Native Americans due to the moonbow (McConnell 1982). There

are three waterfalls in the area that form a triangle. Three is a sacred number for many

cultural groups around the world including Native Americans. According to one

employee, Eagle Falls, Cumberland Falls, and Yahoo Falls are the sacred three waterfalls

in the area worshiped by the Cherokee and Shawnee (personal communication 2009)

Early Europeans settled in the region in the mid to late 1700’s. A majority of the

first settlers were hunters and explorers. In the 1800’s, as more and more people entered

the region and saw the falls it became known as something to see for the rare

“moonbow”. During the Civil War era, the first log cabin built near the falls served as a

recuperative facility for confederate soldiers. There were several mineral springs nearby

that were believed to cure respiratory ailments (McConnell 1982). Over time, with

funding from the state, better transportation routes were in place as well as a bridge

which made it easier for people to visit the falls. Since then, several hotels and resorts

have been built near the falls.

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In 1947, the Commonwealth of Kentucky assumed ownership of the falls. Over

the years the park has grown into a resort park with a hotel and restaurant for meetings,

weddings, vacations, and gatherings. Although relatively isolated, the waterfall is

heavily promoted by Kentucky State Parks for being an ideal vacation spot for families

since a resort is within the park. The park has historically been known as a good

honeymoon site for people in the region. The park also advises visitors to experience and

see the moonbow by publishing on their websites dates for the full moon. On average in

the summer, the parking lot at the falls is full around 11 pm with sometimes 1,000

spectators waiting and hoping to catch a glimpse of the moonbow (Lawrence 1993).

Many locals, college students, families, and photographers come to the falls to be blessed

with seeing the moonbow. Not every full moon produces a moonbow due to weather

conditions and river levels. So some people visit several times before seeing their first

moonbow. New York Times writer Lawrence Joseph upon a visit to the falls in 1992

reported a waitress by the name of Norma saying “Moonbow’s like that. Sometimes you

see it, sometimes it sees you”. The rainbow during the day, usually in the morning

hours, is easier to observe (Figure 23). If one is lucky, according to the park rangers, two

rainbows might be visible.

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Figure 23: Rainbow taken at 10:13 AM (Author 2009)

Is Cumberland Falls a Spiritual Landscape?

Cumberland Falls was visited on July 8th-9th, 2009 (Table 1, Chapter IV).

Sixteen visitors were given the questionnaires to fill out while either at the top or along

the trail towards the bottom of the waterfall. I found that distractions of watching

children were not a factor, partially due the fact most of the children there were older

with parents and in general there were fewer children, it was a week day. Also of note,

those sampled for the visitor questionnaires were from nearby or from Ohio and/or

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Florida. Cumberland Falls is near Interstate 75 that connects many major cities from

Gainsville, Florida to Cincinnati, Ohio. Those interviewed here seemed more responsive,

talkative, and interested in the topic of spiritual and sacred landscapes as well as those at

Amicalola Falls. Table 6 shows the percentages as well as number of responses for each

spiritual dimension question trying to answer if the site is a spiritual landscape. These

responses are discussed in greater detail below. One of the questions asked visitors, “Is

this a sacred landscape to you?” At Cumberland Falls, 75 percent (%) of those

interviewed said yes.

Three in-depth interviews were conducted during this time. Ms. Lisa Davis the

park superintendent, Ms. Valerie Thompson a park ranger, and an anonymous expert on

the local history were interviewed.

Table 6: Percentages of Yes Responses to Spiritual Dimension Questions for Cumberland

Falls





Landscape to you?


Cumberland Falls N=16

100% (16) 25% (4) 93.8% (15) 75% (12)

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Cumberland Falls is a significant geologic formation and there are several myths

associated with the waterfall as mentioned above. Native Americans worshiped it for the

rare and special moonbow it produces during full moons. Although myths surround the

waterfall and the moonbow, is Cumberland Falls a spiritual landscape?

Unlike the other sites, there seems to be more fear produced at this waterfall from

comments heard during the observation. Several people have committed suicide or

accidentally fallen from the waterfall before it was roped off. There is also a ghost story

associated with the fall, known as “The Bride of the Falls”, who has been seen by visitors

as well as two park rangers. She was reported wearing all white in the area and quickly

disappeared. This ghostly apparition at the waterfall produces a feeling of the numinous

for those that experience the sighting. The sighting of such apparitions goes beyond the

obvious and into another dimension, it is an unexplainable phenomenon to those that

experience it, leading them into the numinous, or awe and fear of the unknown. This

experience is not about the geology and geography of the site, but about the perceptional

dimension and numinous experience. The site does produce an awe response from

visitors, and when asked if visitors experience awe/fear there, 100% said yes (Table 6).

The numinous is a personal experience and most respondents reported that feelings of

awe were produced for them while visiting especially due to the rainbow (Figure 24).

During my observation time during the day and especially at night I heard many visitors

exclaim how magnificent the falls were and I literally did here people saw they were in

“awe”. I also heard other words during the observation period such as “God’s work,

amazing phenomenon, ahhhhh, and incredible”. The park superintendent, Lisa Davis

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reported that she had been “christened” her first week employed at the park when a

photograph was taken of her at an observation deck downstream of the waterfall with a

double rainbow; one rainbow in the photograph seemed to touch her (personal

communication, 2009).

Figure 24: Rainbow taken by author at 10:11 AM July 8

th, 2009 (Author 2009)

During my observation of the moonbow, the parking lot was almost full by the

time I arrived back at the site around midnight. Many families and couples had made the

walk from the resort down to the falls. It was crowded with people close to the edge,

waiting on the safe side of the ropes for only a few seconds of seeing the moonbow. I

estimated that there were around 400 people at any time on the rock at the top of the

waterfall. There were many people hanging out in the parking lot or walking back and

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forth at different times, so an accurate head count was impossible. Many people were

there for over an hour, only seeing the moonbow faintly for a few seconds at random

throughout their time there. Many people I spoke with had visited the waterfall during a

full moon several times and had not caught sight of a moonbow. I was extremely lucky

that I saw the moonbow, appearing more like a white light. I also happened to be

standing next to a graduate student from Kentucky who had come there to see the fall

with friends. She had a camera similar to mine so she allowed me to use her tripod, and

she changed the settings on my camera so I could catch the moonbow in a photograph

(Figure 25). Many of the children around reported or screamed out that they saw colors

in the moonbow, while the adults stood around and either could not see the moonbow or

only saw a gray outline. The park area near the waterfall stays open late for five days

around the full moon for visitors to experience and be part of what some refer to as a “full

moon” ceremony.

Some people were frustrated that they could not easily see the colors. It was

interesting to experience and be around so many people who were constantly looking

behind them at the full moon and clouds waiting for the full moon’s “show” at the

waterfall. I overheard some people stating they were not impressed with the moonbow.

Perhaps they expected to see it the entire time they were there or in bright colors. Due to

the weather or personal eyesight problems they should have understood that some people

come there several times and never get to see the moonbow for even a second. Patience

seemed to be a big experience for many standing around waiting. The numinous

experience of watching and waiting for the moonbow to show itself was a very personal

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experience, but at the same time the entire crowd would cheer when it showed itself.

There was a group experience of the night, although most people came alone or in small

groups.

Figure 25: Moonbow photograph taken at 12:42 AM.

Full Moon Night July 8th

, 2009. (Author 2009)

Several visitors during the day were sitting observing the view either at the top of

the waterfall or along the various view points along the trail below. Many on top

reported how good the “mist” felt from the waterfall. I even heard one couple discussing

how the positive and negative ions of the mist from the waterfall were making them feel

good. There is also a local man who is part Cherokee who visits the falls often and plays

his flute. According to the rangers, he could be sitting anywhere and likes to hide from

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visitors and play his flute to make them feel special or question what is around them.

From the information gathered, Cumberland falls does fit the first dimension of a

spiritual landscape through the numinous experience.


ritual or ceremony preformed or from some focus point or center. Under “cosmic”,

words such as “ritual, weddings, memorials, and gatherings” are the focus. At

Cumberland Falls, 25% of the visitors questioned responded that the site was set apart as

special through ritual/ceremony. This number seems low considered what occurs once a

month at the site with a full moon phenomenon.

There is a monthly gathering of people at Cumberland Falls, coming as first

timers or every month in order to catch a glimpse of the moonbow during the full moon.

Weddings are common within the park although the number of weddings actually at the

fall is unknown and much smaller. Most people choose to get married at the resort and

have photographs taken at the falls. According to the on-site wedding coordinator, the

choice by couples of not having a wedding at the waterfall is primarily due to the public

use of the waterfall and the fact the park cannot section off the waterfall for a private

wedding. If a couple chooses to get married at the waterfall they know random guests

may be watching. Memorials are unheard of at the waterfall other than memorials of

those who have committed suicide at the waterfall or accidentally fallen off. Many

couples I spoke with celebrated their honeymoon at the park and waterfall area so they

return for anniversaries. Several couples recently had 50th

wedding anniversaries while

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visiting the park. Two couples in one weekend celebrated their 50th

wedding anniversary

at the falls where they originally honeymooned.

The park rangers report that they have seen groups that come to the falls during

the full moon and drum and dance, but I did not witness this activity while there and the

rangers did not know who the groups were or how often they came. Churches have

retreats at the falls and resort though-out the year but the park employees do not know

how many. Most of the respondents answered in the affirmative when asked if the site

was set apart from other areas as special through ritual and/or ceremony

The aesthetic dimension of Cumberland Falls was easily answered through the

visitor questionnaire, with a response of 93.8% that considered it as beautiful. The

experience of people seeing the falls as beautiful was observed during the day and during

the full moon night. Words such as “beautiful, pretty, peaceful, breathtaking, awesome,

awe-inspiring, and gorgeous” were noted during the observation period of visitors during

the day and at night. All respondents on the questionnaire checked that the site was

considered beautiful. When assessed if Cumberland Falls fits the third dimension of a

spiritual landscape through aesthetics, it is obvious from each method that it provided an

aesthetic experience for those at that location.

Cumberland Falls, according to a majority of the respondents, fits the three

dimensions of being a spiritual landscape. There were no available guest logs books to

review for comments and at the time of the study there was not a social networking

“fans” of page on Facebook. Other interesting comments written for the open answer

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questions in the visitor questionnaire of how this site made them feel and heard during

the observation included:

See face in the rock on the waterfall, lady face

Breath deeper

Leave feeling better

Makes you think nature and gods work, is bigger than you are

Spirits in park, spirits at waterfall

Incredible phenomenon

Clears mind

Realize how small human is near God

See and feel beauty of gods work

Lots to do/feel here but peaceful

Inspired and in awe

Magical

Wonderful phenomenon

Miracle of gods work

Time stands still

Magic because we do not understand it all really.

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5.2 Sacred Place verses Spiritual Landscape results

The visitor questionnaire was aimed at discovering how the dimensions of a

spiritual experience played into to defining a spiritual landscape according to visitors.

There were discrepancies in how the visitors answered the questions and the actual

activities and behavior of visitors at the sites. One interesting comparison in this study is

understanding why the averaged results for the visitors responding to the dimensions of

numinous, cosmic, and aesthetics were relatively low compared to how the visitors

responded to each site being a sacred place (Table 7).

Table 7: Summary of all Sites Percentages of Yes Responses to Questions




Spiritual Dimensions Averaged for Spiritual Landscape identification.

Is this site a Sacred Landscape to you?

Site Percentage of Yes Responses (N)

Amicalola Falls N=16

86.7% (13) 31.3% (5) 100% (16) 72.6% 93.8% (15)

Blue Hole Spring N=16

25% (4) 18.8% (3) 87.5% (14) 43.8% 100% (16)

Cumberland Falls N=16

100% (16) 25% (4) 93.75% (15) 72.9% 75% (12)

Grandfather Mountain N=17

64.7% (11) 29.4% (5) 94.1% (16) 63.3% 64.7% (11)

Mount Mitchell N=17

76.4% (13) 17% (1) 100% (17) 64.5% 82.4% (14)

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When comparing how people responded to the question if the site was a sacred

landscape and comparing that response to how they responded to answering the spiritual

experiences dimension questions some interesting differences surfaced. Interesting when

asked if the sites were sacred landscapes the percentages were much higher than the

overall average at each site of a person’s spiritual experience including the numinous,

cosmic, and aesthetic dimensions. So some people from this naturally on some level

believe these landscapes to be sacred without knowing why or having experiences

themselves of the sacred or a spiritual experience.

At Amicalola Falls 93.8% said the falls were sacred whereas averaging the

spiritual dimensions we arrive at only 72.6% of the visitors having a spiritual experience

there. One reason this percentage may be different, could be attributed to the wording of

the cosmic question because through the various other methods we can ascertain that the

site does produce numinous and aesthetic experiences and that for some of the visitors the

site is set apart as special through a non-secular activity. Some of the sacredness of the

waterfall, may have to do with the known Cherokee myths of the waterfall and the fact it

lies within historic Cherokee territory. Although, when asked during the visitor

questionnaire if they knew of any myths associated with the waterfall, only five out of the

sixteen visitors mentioned the cascades representing the Cherokee Nations (Table 8).

At Blue Hole Spring, 100% of the visitors said the site was sacred but as

discussed previously, is it the spring or the council grounds that they viewed and

answered as sacred? Blue Hole Spring thru the visitor questionnaires came out very low

as provoking the spiritual experiences in the visitors. From reviewing the guest log

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books, many of the responses were spiritual and/or religious in nature. It might be easier

for most people to see this spring landscape as sacred because of the history of the area

and the heavy Cherokee influence. Fourteen of the visitors responded out of the sixteen

that they knew of myths associated with the spring; most of them knew it was a water

source for the council.

At Cumberland Falls, the sacred landscape percentage and the spiritual landscape

dimension questions average both were around 75%. This site was historically used and

considered magical for Native America groups and is still observed as special through

observance of the moonbow during the full moon “gathering” and various other non-

secular activities that are promoted at the park. Ten of the visitors out of sixteen

responded that they knew of myths associated with the waterfall pertaining to the

Cherokee in the area. The percentage of responses from the visitors that believed the site

to be a sacred landscape seems low since 100% of the respondents reported a numinous

experience there. However, this site had a more religious Christian fundamental tone in

the sample population in which I received more comments from visitors about nature not

being sacred and church being “the only sacred place for God” as one visitor stated to

me. The difference in sample population could have attributed to the variations in

responses.

At Grandfather Mountain, non-secular activities that are promoted including

weddings and gatherings that may lead people to view the landscapes in a different light

and may help people develop various attachments and beliefs to these landscapes. When

asked if Grandfather Mountain is a sacred landscape, 64.7% of the respondents said yes

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and the average for the spiritual experience was 63.3%. These numbers are relatively

close. When asked if the visitors knew of any myths associated with each site, only nine

out of the seventeen visitors said they knew about the mountain either the naming of the

mountain being Cherokee and only a few made references to the naming of the mountain

based on the profile of a man. Some people may consider the profile name a myth others

may not. The population sample was similar to Cumberland Falls, in that many people

seemed to have an opinion about sacred being more related to Christian ideologies and

church, not natural settings such as Grandfather.

At Mount Mitchell 82.4% of visitors responded that the mountain was sacred

while only 64.5% may deem it a spiritual landscape from the way the questions were

worded. The Mountain has myths associated with it and is a special landscape especially

here in the region however, it is not being used in the same way and non-secular activities

here are not heard of often. Only eight visitors out of the seventeen questioned,

responded that they knew of a myth and/or story attached to Mount Mitchell. They all

mentioned the debate about it being the highest point and a few refereed to Dr. Mitchell’s

death.

For this research, a sacred place is a site that is known as culturally significant for

a population and has associated myths with it at each site over half of the visitors thought

the sites were sacred places for each landscape site based on the question in the visitor

questionnaire (Table 8). This finding makes sense if sacred places are culturally

significant with stories attached to them; all five sites have myths and/or stories

associated to the importance of the physical landscape feature as summarized in Table 8.

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Table 8: Summary of Myths at Each Study Site and Percentage of Responses for

designating the landscape as sacred.

Site Is this site a Sacred Landscape to you? (from Table 7)

Knowledge of Stories/Myths Associated with Landscape.

Myths/Stories

Amicalola

Falls

93.8% 31.25% (5) Seven Cascades Represent the Seven

Cherokee Clans

Blue Hole

Spring

100% 87.5% (14) Spring used as water source for Cherokee

Council

Cumberland

Falls

75% 62.5% (10) Native Americans including the Cherokee

believed the three

waterfalls in the area including Cumberland

Falls are sacred.

Moonbow attracted the sacredness for the

Cherokee and other groups.

Grandfather

Mountain

64.7% 52.9% (9) Tanawha the name of the mountain in

Cherokee means Eagle

(messenger bird)

Profile of the rocky terrain of Grandfather

Mt. resembles a mans face

Mount

Mitchell

82.4% 47% (8) Kyanite is a sacred stone within the new age

community which is found within the

geology of the mountain.

Named after Dr. Mitchell

Highest Mountain in Eastern United States

From the visitor questionnaires assessing numinous, cosmic, and aesthetic

experiences, the sites scored low in producing a spiritual experience especially under the

cosmic dimensions even when known rituals and ceremonies were observed as

summarized in Table 9. There were issues in the phrasing of the questions which

confused some visitors and perhaps attributed to the low percentages. Many people may

not understand how wide ranging and inclusive the terms ritual and/or ceremony refer to

in understanding the cosmic dimension of a site. All five sites have some type of

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ceremonies and/or rituals that occur at them although some are more individual while

other non-secular activities are more group oriented large annual events. Also the

question for the numinous regarding if the site produced awe and/or fear could have also

been confusing to some visitors filling out the questionnaires.

Table 9: Comparison of known types of non-secular activities including

Rituals/Ceremonies for each site and percentage of yes responses from visitors to cosmic

dimension.

Site COSMIC Is the site set apart as special for you through ritual and/or ceremony?

Non-Secular Activities

Amicalola

Falls

31.3% Weddings; Memorials; Family Gatherings; Engagements;

Musical Instrument Playing; Church Services (Easter

Sermon); Baptisms at lower pool; walking meditation;

private meditation

Blue Hole

Spring

18.8% Baptism Water Source; Drinking Water; weddings

(mainly for those of Cherokee descent)

Cumberland

Falls

25% Moonbow Full Moon Observance; Weddings; Musical

Instrument Playing including Flutes and Drums; private

meditation time

Grandfather

Mountain

29.4% Weddings; Engagements: Memorials/Ash Scatterings:

Family Gatherings; Annual Highland Games; private

meditation time; Annual Singing on the Mountain:

Church Services; Sacred Apu (monument at unknown

location by group in Asheville)

Mount

Mitchell

17% Peruvian despacho Ceremony (once); Sacred Apu

(monument at unknown location by group in Asheville);

weddings

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5.3 Spiritual Landscapes of the Southern Appalachian Region

The five sites were selected in order to help answer the research questions stated

in Chapter I, not only to determine if they were spiritual landscapes. There are many

more sites within the region both public and private that could have been included to

investigate people’s spiritual experiences in nature and non-secular uses. These five sites

helped especially in understanding Mills definition of a spiritual landscape and if a

particular landscape that produce a spiritual experience can be deduced to the numinous,

cosmic, and aesthetic dimensions. The numinous and aesthetic dimensions of a

landscape and the experiences produced for individuals and groups are easy for most to

comprehend and articulate. The cosmic dimension of a spiritual experience seems to be a

point of confusion and uncertainty. The visitor questionnaires all reported a low response

to the cosmic dimension, yet there were many non-secular activities occurring that could

relate to the cosmic dimension but few people reported that the landscapes were set apart

for them as sacred or meaningful through ritual and or ceremony. The visitor

questionnaires gave the least insight into the cosmic dimension; the in-depth interviews

and observations at each site gave much more information about the cosmic dimension in

that people were perhaps unknowingly on some level participating in various non-secular

events and were experiencing the cosmic dimension.

Many people also participate in non-secular activities at these landscapes. Some

of the reasons for non-secular activities have to do with topophilia. People have

emotional attachments to a place for historical/cultural reasons or personal romantic

reasons. Some of the experiences people had and the non-secular activities they were

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involved with were serendipitous while others were carefully planned events due to the

landscape site itself and its meaning for them within their lives.

Having discussed and assessed the three attributes of spirituality for each of the

five locations examined in this research, the following section concludes by considering

how well the research fulfilled the objectives outlined in Chapter I. Chapter VI also

addresses how this research fills in the gaps related to the understanding non-secular uses

and spiritual experiences of natural sites in the SAR and how this research ties into

Tuan’s topophilia.

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CHAPTER VI

DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS

6.1 Spiritual Landscapes in the Region

This research explores place perceptions and non-secular uses of major highland

and water features throughout the Southern Appalachian Region. Previous research in

this field, particularly in the discipline of geography, has been limited as discussed in

Chapters I and II. This research seeks to shed additional light on the topics of sacred

places, spiritual experiences in nature, and spiritual landscapes in particular in the

Southern Appalachian Mountains. Several basic questions framed the research and were

answered throughout the study by various methods as summarized in the following

sections.

Extensive research on sacred places exists for many regions of the world;

however, little was previously focused on the American Southeast or the Appalachian

Mountain region. This research concerning place perception of certain landscapes that

may be considered sacred or culturally significant to different people on a smaller scale

of particular sites where certain landforms and water bodies occur in the Appalachian

Mountains can be extended out in additional studies to other regions. Few studies around

the world examined the non-secular uses associated with spiritual and/or religious

activities at various natural landscapes. This research explored more in-depth the types

of non-secular activities at different landscapes to gain a better understanding of the

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various activities that people as individuals or groups participate in at different natural

settings. Information about sacred places and how landscapes are used religiously or

spiritually through non-secular activities in the Southern Appalachian Region is

important for preservation of cultural beliefs and popular public landscapes, and to

understand the meaning of landscapes related to spirituality.

People throughout the world consider particular landscapes as sacred or culturally

meaningful, including sites within the Appalachian Mountains, as this research brought to

light. Many indigenous groups revere mountains with monolithic structures as shown by

creation myths or stories of gods inhabiting them. Much of the previous work in this area

focused on the American Southwest, Europe, or Asia. This research recorded historic

myths and stories of the various landscapes related to cultural groups such as the

Cherokee in the SAR, as well as the views of early European settlers on the physical

terrain, which gave meaning and names to places. Monolithic sites, such as Grandfather

Mountain, are important physically and culturally in the Southern Appalachian Region.

In his dissertation, Mills (1992, 218) raises the question “Do We, Can We, or

Should We Have Spiritual Landscapes in Contemporary North America?” This study

picked up where Mills left off in seeking to answer this question as it applies to the

Southern Appalachian Region. This research was interested in not only places as sacred

but additionally explored the human experiences that occur at the place in question, thus

defining a spiritual landscape. Mills named three qualities for what he termed a “spiritual

landscape”: a site with numinous, cosmic, and aesthetic qualities. These qualities create

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experiences for people at places as defined in more detail in Chapter II and described in

Chapter V as to how each dimension manifested itself at each site.

This study also expanded upon Tuan’s (1976) ideas of topophilia, which involve

the bonds between people and place. The concern of this study is in the present,

examining how we as a society use places for non-secular activities and view particular

natural landscapes in the twenty first century. Few studies have researched the

interaction between the land and the ways in which people use areas outside of traditional

outdoor recreation activities, or their spiritual experiences and perceptions of the place.

This research demonstrated that although it may not be commonly heard of or

discussed, certain non-secular activities seem to occur and perhaps are occurring in

increasing numbers at various natural landscapes. At Amicalola Falls and Mount Mitchell

the park rangers, have seen an increase in the number of weddings, a type of ceremonial

activity or non-secular event when a religious authority is present. In another example,

natural landscapes that are respected and venerated, where non-secular activities take

place, often produce feelings, attitudes, and a certain spiritual frame of mind. This

research brought a greater understanding and awareness of natural landscapes that evoke

spiritual experiences and non-secular activities by looking at the interactions people have

at various natural landscapes in the Southern Appalachian Region.

In the following sections each proposed research question is addressed and a

discussion follows concerning how the question was answered as well as the results

analyzed. Within some of the initial research questions, additional questions, concerns,

and thoughts are brought forward for future research in this area. Although this research

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uncovered information regarding spiritual experiences in nature, Southern Appalachian

Region sacred places, non-secular activities, and spiritual landscapes, there is much more

that could be researched to expand the field of the Geography of Religion and Belief

Systems.

6.2 Research Questions, Conclusions, and Discussions

Research Question: What types of spiritual experiences are associated with different

natural sites?

People as individuals, in small groups, and/or as part of large gatherings have

various spiritual experiences at different landscapes. The spiritual experience including

the numinous, cosmic, and aesthetic dimensions is very personal and cannot be captured

or summarized by numbers alone. The various spiritual experiences were captured more

in the in-depth interviews and by observations at each site. People reported feeling

drawn to some of the sites, as the older gentleman was drawn to Amicalola Falls after a

visit to a doctor. In addition to being “drawn” to places, other spiritual experiences

ranged from people experiencing magical answers to their life’s questions, feeling

connected to the world, feeling more at peace with major life changes, involvement in

ceremonies, and moments of appreciating the beauty of the site. There really was no one

spiritual experience that was the same at each site. Some of the experiences were similar

but none were experienced in the same way, since everyone perceives their experiences

from a different perspective.

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Research Question: What types of non-secular activities are associated with different

natural sites?

Spiritual experiences as reported in the visitor questionnaires included the

numinous and aesthetic dimensions easily; however, the cosmic dimension was

somewhat harder for people to identify with and associate with their perceptions.

Through observation and participation in events, and knowledge shared by in-depth

interviewees, non-secular activities that help understand the cosmic dimension at each

site (Table 8, Chapter V). Non-secular activities are heavily promoted at some landscape

sites through the various government agencies such as at Amicalola Falls with the

Georgia State Parks, Cumberland Falls with Kentucky State Parks, and at Grandfather

Mountain the privately owned section is promoted by Grandfather Mountain, Inc.

Numbers as to how many non-secular activities such as weddings and memorials

occur are hard to ascertain due to the various park offices not recording this information.

Some parks do not allow the spreading of ashes although it is known to occur without the

permission of park officials. Weddings at some parks require permits or organizational

help, which made it easier to find out how many weddings occurred at Amicalola Falls

every year. According to the wedding venue coordinators at Amicalola Falls and

Cumberland Falls, there has been an increase in the number of weddings over the years.

Most of the couples reported reasons for having a wedding at the landscape were because

of the beauty of the site and some reported emotional attachments to the particular

landscape. Often these emotional attachments were because the couple had been on a

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date to the site and “feel in love” either with the site or each other there or they got

engaged there. Although, both waterfall sites are set up to be ideal wedding venues

because of the accessibility of the lodges and other material needs associated with

weddings the wedding coordinators both shared that most couples simply think the site is

beautiful. It is unknown as to how the economic factor plays into choices of weddings at

these particular landscapes.

Other group gatherings may be hard to ascertain in numbers due to such activities

being left off the radar of park programs and park permit requirements and/or a lack of

groups informing the parks that they are there doing certain non-secular activities.

Private meditations are almost impossible to record in numbers although they do occur

according to interviews with visitors and other more in-depth interviews.

Many people may not understand that some of the activities they do at the parks

are considered non-secular and/or a type of ritual and/or ceremony. The visitor responses

for the question “Is this site set apart for you as special through ritual and/or ceremony”

did not accurately reflect what was observed or known to have occurred at each site. The

question might better have been followed with a question asking people to check off if

they participated in the following type of events (to help clarify the cosmic dimension):

weddings, spreading of ashes, memorials, family gatherings, other types of group

gatherings, private meditation, meditation retreats, prayer, church services, or others of

this nature that they could specify in an open response. A wedding may be a non-secular

or a secular event depending upon the setting, who officiates the ceremony, and

components of the ceremony. A wedding held at the county court house would be

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secular compared to a wedding held in a park officiated by a Baptist Preacher for

example. Also if other religious aspects are included in the ceremony such as a Celtic

hand fasting, Native American Prayers, Christian prayers, or any other type of ritual are

within the wedding ceremony it would be an attempt although maybe not always for the

known religious reasons or in the same manor as a non-secular event.

The non-secular activities at the sites were often motivated by the beauty of the

place and the terrain. The despacho ceremony at Mount Mitchell occurred there because

of the groups belief in the power of the mountain. The Highland Games occur at

Grandfather Mountain because that landscape, the mountain and the meadow remind

people of similar landscapes in Scotland. Weddings at the waterfalls often occur because

of the beauty of the place or attachments. At Blue Hole Spring non-secular activities

often occur because of ancestral connections to the Cherokee. Other non-secular

activities such as private meditations seem often to simply happen for people at random

or because they went to the particular site for reflective alone time. Often people

reported going to the sites to escape their daily lives and be alone, closer to God such as

some said about Grandfather Mountain and Mount Mitchell.

Although this research focuses on five public natural areas, there are also private

areas within the region that might also attract various no-secular activities. There are

numerous waterfalls, rivers, mountain tops, forest, springs, and meadows that are

privately owned that people may as well engage in non-secular activities especially if

they have a personal connection to the site.

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Research Question: At the selected five study sites, what types of features within the

landscape are people having spiritual experiences at within the Southern

Appalachian Region?

People have spiritual experiences at various locations throughout the region. The

sites were chosen for this study because of historical myths and uses of the sites and

known or rumored contemporary non-secular activities. Features in this study included

originally two mountains, two waterfalls, and one spring. However, landscapes often

have more than one feature within them or close by. Some of these features were

mentioned by the visitors and during the in-depth interviews in addition to the original

landscape that was being assessed for the study. Some of these physical features may

have played into some interpretations and experiences (Table 10).

At Amicalola Falls, the waterfall was primarily of interest; however, at the top of

the waterfall, the mountain view contributed to some of the “beauty” aspect of people’s

spiritual experiences. At Blue Hole Spring, there was no other physical landscape feature

that played into interpretations. At Cumberland Falls, the waterfall is along the

Cumberland River which was never mentioned by visitors or guests as sacred or spiritual.

However, the other two nearby waterfalls discussed were seen to form a triangle with

Cumberland, which made the three waterfalls sacred sites. At Grandfather Mountain, the

meadow played into how people interpreted and experienced the mountain for the

highland games and their perception of the mountain and meadow similar to the Scottish

landscape. At Mount Mitchell, the mountain originally was the primary focus. Upon

talking with visitors and others, the surrounding spruce-fir forest plays into the spiritual

166

experience that some people have on the mountain, as well as the spring on the mountain

which provides water for local people to collect for rituals.

Spiritual experiences may also vary from one type of waterfall to another or from

one mountain peak to another. The experiences reported at Grandfather Mountain and

Mount Mitchell seem to be similar perhaps due to their similar vegetation, climate, and

location in North Carolina. However, the responses generated may vary if we compare

these two mountains with open views of the surrounding landscape to a place nearby in

Virginia such as Mt. Rodgers. Mt. Rodgers has a dense forest summit with limited views

which might give a visitor a more enclosed private feeling verses the wide panoramic

view and windy conditions of Grandfather Mountain and Mount Mitchell.

Table 10: Summary of Physical Landscape Features

Site Originally investigated

physical feature

Additional physical feature that

came into play

Amicalola Falls Waterfall Mountains (view)

Blue Hole Spring Spring N/A

Cumberland Falls Waterfall River and two other waterfalls

Grandfather Mountain Mountain Meadow

Mount Mitchell Mountain Spring and forest

Research Question: Is Mills’ definition of a spiritual landscape appropriate and

useful in helping to identify if we can and if we do have spiritual landscapes in

America; in particular in the Southern Appalachian Region?

This research took Mill’s definition of a spiritual landscape using the numinous,

cosmic, and aesthetic dimensions and ground tested these spiritual experience divisions at

five selected sites in the SAR. Mills’ definition of a spiritual landscape is not completely

167

appropriate for identifying if we can and if we do have spiritual landscapes in the

Southern Appalachian Region. The aesthetic dimension is easy for most people to

comprehend in most places in the world regardless of cultural or religious affiliations.

The numinous experience is a personal experience and may be perceived by some

individuals through differences in the various senses as evidenced in the stories people

told about their experiences at sites. Examples of different sensory variations in the

numinous include visual perceptions through changes in lighting, physical sensations and

feelings, and/or inner knowing and thoughts. The cosmic dimension is much harder for

people to fully understand. The main problem with using these dimensions came from the

researcher’s phrasing of the cosmic question and lack of follow up in clarifying

rituals/ceremonies and non-secular activities for the visitor questionnaire. There is also a

regional difference in how people understand the terms regarding rituals, ceremonies,

non-secular, and spiritual. One issue is taking these terms from the scholarly academic

world and using them in conversations with people of various educational levels,

religious backgrounds, and cultural attributes. A topic like this one is also hard to fully

comprehend from numbers and brief questions. The findings from the personal in-depth

interviews gave much more insight into understanding and identifying spiritual

experiences that occur at the five selected landscapes. Landscapes do exist in the SAR

that create spiritual experiences for people as shown in studying the five sites selected

and many more could exist that have not been discussed in this research.

Spiritual landscape is a complex term although on the surface perhaps easy to

understand how spiritual experiences in nature at particular landscapes might be deemed

168

so by individuals, groups, societies, or nations. In the SAR, people think about nature

and religion and the term spiritual landscape might have different meanings to various

people or groups based upon their own experiences and knowledge of nature and

spirituality. This research ground tested Mill’s dimensions of a spiritual experience in

order to understand the definition of a spiritual landscape and if Mill’s ideas are useful in

the application in everyday usage and understanding; however, based upon individual

experiences of spirituality the term is not easily broken into three dimensions.

In trying to understand spiritual experience, it is important to know how people in

different regions such as the Appalachian Mountains perceive, comprehend, and use the

subjective terms of rituals/ceremonies, non-secular activates, and spiritual experiences.

Spiritual experiences are very personal, wide ranging, and I do not think they can be

combined into one definition or several dimensions. Spiritual experiences are manifested

as individual realities and often vary between individuals or may be group realities of

participants in a group that have similar experiences based on the intention of the group

or background of the group. Spiritual experiences at particular landscapes cannot be

narrowed down to a questionnaire; since they are experiences and associated with the

interpreters or observers own reality of what a spiritual experience is. From my

perspective, the term spiritual landscape would imply for an individual or group as a

landscape that triggers some type of spiritual experience for them. Spiritual experiences

will vary for people and are too encompassing to be narrowed into a box to test. Letting

people openly discuss their experiences, feelings, and activities they do while there at the

particular landscape in an unstructured format will give more insight into spiritual

169

experiences within natural settings. Also this information will shed light on the type of

non-secular activities people engage in and any spiritual associations they have with a

particular activity. While a wedding for some with a religious officiate may produce

more of a spiritual experience for some, others may not have a spiritual experience by

getting married at a particular landscape. For some people a spiritual experience may

be purely random whereas for others it may be induced by the activity they engage in

with purpose or by coincidence there.

Research Question: Does the study of spiritual landscapes further Tuan’s ideas of

topophilia as it incorporates the spiritual bond and connections with people and

place?

The study of spiritual landscapes, and people’s spiritual experiences at particular

landscapes, is very useful for understanding the concept of topophilia. People have

certain attachments and perceptions of various landscapes through spiritual experiences

they have there or have heard of others having at particular places. The idea that people

attach a spiritual experience to a landscape is nothing new, although few geographic

studies have looked into this because it is hard to map and derive empirical values.

Tuan’s own work consists mostly of theoretical ideas of how different cultures respond to

the land. This research applied Mill’s dimensions of a spiritual landscape on the ground

through visitor questionnaires, in-depth interviews, and observation/participation in non-

secular events in order to more fully understand the idea of topophilia in the SAR.

Appreciation of the landscape is personal experience. Everyone sees beauty

through their own interpretation. Most responded that the sites in this study were

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beautiful. Visitors often as Tuan (1974) stated have a fresh perspective of places and

easily see beauty whereas natives have a more complex view of beauty in particular

landscapes they are familiar with. This study did not ask for demographic information;

although from observation a majority of the people questioned were from within the

region and yet a high number reported the sites as beautiful. Even the park rangers, local

historians, and other experts who might be considered more “native” all referenced how

beautiful the respective sites were. Wilderness areas historically in America were once

places seen as threatening due to Indians/demons present. This perception has changed

where today most people visit nature to experience things out of their normal realities.

Throughout history around the world, mountains have flipped in how people perceive

them from being threatening to places of worship and beauty. Tuan’s work on topophilia

looked into the demographic variability of place perception and attachment but little has

been done in relating people’s spiritual or religious ideologies to natural landscapes today

in the twenty first century. As Tuan stated, “topophilia is richly informed by the reality

of environment when it combines with religious love or scientific curiosity” (1974: 124).

This research has perhaps opened the door to furthering the understanding of people’s

religious or spiritual experiences in nature especially in the activities that they engaged in

within nature.

6.3 Future Research Questions and Considerations

This research sought to bring a greater understanding and awareness of natural

landscapes that evoke spiritual experiences in the Southern Appalachian region. To

identify where they are, why some places are respected more than others. Also to gain an

171

understanding of the types of experiences that people report having there. This study has

opened the door for future studies related to this topic throughout North America and has

also triggered additional questions about how to define spiritual experiences thus spiritual

landscapes. Although this research shed light on topics that have seldom been the focus

of geographic studies, there is still more that needs to be researched in order to fully

understand spiritual landscapes and non-secular uses. Additional questions are outlined

below for future research efforts.

Do the Celtic roots of some mountain people flow through to the natural

religious sites in the Appalachian Region?

How does the Asheville, North Carolina “New-Age” community play into

spiritual landscapes in the nearby area such as with Mount Mitchell?

For Blue Hole Spring, is the spring itself considered sacred alone or is it

because of the surrounding historic landscape site of the council grounds?

Are the Cherokee youth learning about natural landscapes within their historic

belief system, or how to respect and do ceremonies at springs today, or is this

slowly being forgotten and replaced by contemporary, non-Native ways of

being in everyday life?

How has the promotion of sites such as Amicalola Falls and Cumberland

Falls as wedding venues changed over the years, since they are now promoted

in major wedding magazines?

172

Has the number of weddings and memorials increased over the years at each

site and if so, why? Is it for economic reasons or are people becoming aware

of and desiring outdoor locations for such events?

In the end, do we, can we, and should we have spiritual landscapes in North

America? This research demonstrated that we do have landscapes that produce spiritual

experiences for people in the Appalachian regions. The spiritual landscape potential of

the SAR is great due to the number of natural features, history, and culture in the region

as shown when focusing on the five study sites. There are numerous other locations that

produce these experiences for people and encourage non-secular activities not discussed

here but could be identified in the region. The question of “should we have spiritual

landscapes” seems more of a personal question, perhaps better left to individuals to

decide, unless these landscapes become abused from over-use which at this time does not

seem to be an issue. Sacred Places, places with stories attached to them and of cultural

significance, are found everywhere in the world. Some sites may be forgotten over time

or not used as they once were, as is the case with Blue Hole Spring. All of the sites

except for Mount Mitchell were known to be sites used by the Cherokee or earlier Native

American tribes. They had stories attached to them as well as previous uses which might

have contributed to how they are perceived and the activities that occur at them today.

Blue Hole Spring is a sacred place to the Cherokee, although from information

found it seems to be slowly fading into the past as a special place that provided spiritual

insight, cleansing, and renewal for a group of people. A few people today perceive the

site as producing a spiritual experience for them, but from observation and talking with

173

others it appears that Blue Hole Spring does not produce the same spiritual experience it

once did for many. It also does not seem to produce a spiritual experience as often for as

many people as the other sites do today. Why this is may be due to the history of the site,

or the fact it is a spring that is fading into history, if the Cherokee culture is not preserved

and promoted for future generations concerning how springs were respected, venerated,

and worshiped through ceremonial acts.

Amicalola Falls, Grandfather Mountain, and Cumberland Falls are heavily

promoted for various activities for people in the twenty first century. Mount Mitchell will

always in some form be respected for being the highest peak in the eastern United States,

and groups from Asheville will continue to perform ceremonies and do non-secular

activities on the mountain. I believe in the coming years we will hear of more non-secular

activities and spiritual experiences occurring at these sites as Americans are becoming

more conscious of how and where they spend their money and more spiritually conscious

as wars over religion continue. Nature and natural landscapes such as mountain tops and

waterfalls may be the few places where people can continue to go for renewal and

spiritual insight in the twenty-first century.

174

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APPENDIX A:

EXPERT INTERVIEW SAMPLE QUESTIONS

187

University of North Carolina at Greensboro

Sample In-Depth Interview Questions (individual “expert” or speaking for a group)

Name and Job Title: (if anonymous leave blank)

Site:

1. What is your idea of a sacred landscape? (Examples: Natural place, historic site,

churches, or Native American Sites)

2. What type of natural landscapes do you regard as sacred, spiritual, religious, or

meaningful? Why?

3. How do you or others that you are associated with (if speaking for a group) feel

about or use mountains and water sources for spiritual reasons? Can you share

with me examples of how this site is used?

4. Spiritual Landscape Definition: check the box for a response of yes for yourself or

group.

Numinous: Does the site evoke awe and/or fear?

Cosmic: Is this site set apart from other areas as sacred through ritual or

ceremony?

Aesthetic: Is this site considered beautiful?

5. Are there sacred landscapes within the Southern Appalachian Region that you

know of, if so can you briefly describe that site to me? IS this site considered

sacred? If so, by whom and how?

188

6. Do you know of any historical and/or cultural uses of this site such as through

local stories, myths, or any associated folklore stories attached to this site?

7. Do you or do you know of others who visit this site for religious/spiritual

purposes? (i.e., weddings, memorial services, church ceremonies, or Native-

American vision-questing, etc.) If so, what religious/spiritual activity have you or

others been involved with?

8. Do you have any personal stories or experiences associated with this site that you

are willing to share with me?

9. Have you heard of others having any type of spiritual connection to this site (i.e.,

visitors mentioning as to why they come back again and again, visitors wanting

weddings/memorials here, or a strong connection to the land/site)

189

APPENDIX B:

VISITOR QUESTIONNAIRE

190

UNIVERSITY OF NORTH CAROLINA AT GREENSBORO

Site: __________________________

1. Why are you visiting this site today? Check all that apply.

Closeness from home

Distance from home

Beautiful scenery

Family tradition. Optional, how many times a year does your family visit?

____________

Certain activity available here. Optional what activity? ____________________

Special feeling when at this site. Optional describe _____________________

just enjoy visiting

other __________________________________

2. What do you like best about this site?

3. What category best describes your party?

Family with children

Alone

Couple

Church charter group

Civic charter group

Friends and relatives

Other (explain): ______________________

4. Do you consider this place a sacred landscape?

Yes

No

5. If yes to Question 4, why do you consider this place a sacred landscape?

6. Check the box for a response of yes to the questions below.

Does the site evoke awe and/or fear to you?

Is this site set apart from other areas as special for you through ritual and/or

ceremony?

Is this site considered beautiful to you?

7. Do you know of any historical and/or cultural uses of the site? Have you heard of any myths

or folklore attached to this site?

Yes

No

8. If you answered yes to Question 7, please describe what you have heard about the site

briefly. If no, skip this question.

9. Have you ever visited this site for any religious/spiritual purposes? (i.e., weddings, memorial

services, church ceremonies, other ceremonies, or Native-American vision-questing, etc.) If

so, what activity have you been involved with? If no, skip this question.

10. How do you feel being at this site?

191

APPENDIX C:

PERSONAL COMMUNICATIONS (IN-DEPTH INTERVIEWS IN 2009)

192

Amicalola Falls Anonymous. 2009. Visitor. 25 July 2009 Burson, Jim. 2009. Friend of the Park. 25 July 2009. Dean, Lauretta. 2009. Park Ranger. 25 July 2009. Horn, Ronna. 2009. Lodge Wedding Coordinator. 14 October 2009. Tanner, Bill. 2009. Park Superintendent. 25 July 2009. Blue Hole Spring Abrams, Michael. 2009. Historical Expert. 31 July 2009. Meadows, Amber. 2009. Park Ranger. 31 July 2009. Cumberland Falls Anonymous. 2009. Local. 9 July 2009 Davis, Lisa. 2009. Park Superintendent. 8 July 2009 Thompson, Valerie. 2009. Park Ranger. 8 July 2009 Grandfather Mountain Aldrige, Diane. 2009. Employee. 10 July 2009. Anonymous. 2009. Local. 18 October 2009. Morton, Crae. 2009. Manager/Owner of Grandfather Incorporated. 10 July 2009. Taylor, Thomas. 2009. Employee of Grandfather Mountain Highland Games.

10 July 2009. Mount Mitchell Anonymous. 2009. 8 August 2009. Mutel, Matt. 2009. Park Ranger. 7 August 2009.

Tyson, Glenda. 2009. Park Employee. 7 August 2009.

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